USA Horse Racing

The USA Horse Racing industry as a whole is a multi-billion dollar concern supplying jobs to hundreds of thousands of Americans while being a major source of tax revenue for many States, particularly California and Kentucky. Horse racing betting in the USA is very substantial with the amount wagered on Breeders Cup day alone exceeding $120 million.

US Horse Races are administered at a state level with tracks taking a percentage of the handle wagered on every race (usually between 20%-25%) to pay taxes and expenses. There is American horse racing on a daily basis at numerous racetracks with thoroughbred and quarter horse races the most popular.

Organized Horse Racing in the USA didn't start until after the civil war, although horses were brought to America much earlier. From that point onward, thoroughbred racing really took off and by 1890 the were 314 tracks in operation.

Unfortunately USA horse racing wasn't well governed early on, which led to criminal elements influencing the sport. This lead to the American Jockey Club being formed, who ruled racing with an iron first and  got rid of most of the corruption. USA horse racing suffered its worst period in the early 1900s because of antigambling sentiment. Pari Mutuel wagering on the Kentucky Derby signaled the turnaround for racing, and the model was adopted by many states.

Today, US horse racing features some of the most important horse races in the world including the Triple Crown (Kentucky Derby, Preakness Stakes, and Belmont Stakes) and the annual Breeders' Cup race meeting, which culminates with the Breeders' Cup Classic. This is the joint-second richest horse race in the world with a purse of $5,000,000. Only the Dubai World Cup offers more prize money.

We have listed some of the most popular USA horse races here, and we also recommend safe online sportsbooks and racebooks where players can bet on US horse racing. These sportsbooks offer excellent promotions and cash-back rebates (on some USA tracks the amount is as high as 8%) on your betting handle.

USA Horse Racing - The Major Races

The jewel in the crown for American juveniles is unquestionably the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, but until the recent success of Street Sense it was considered a curse to win this race, at least for horses with Triple Crown aspirations.

One of America's most important handicaps, the Stephen Foster is named for a famous songwriter, and generally draws a high class field to Churchill Downs in Kentucky.

The second-most important race at the Breeders' Cup meeting is generally held to be the Breeders' Cup Turf - a truly international race that routinely attracts some of the best European and overseas racehorses to challenge the USA's top turf runners.

The Arlington Million is one of the premier turf races in America, and has been won in the past by legendary racehorses such as John Henry. It usually attracts an international field and is part of the Emirates World Series Racing Championship.

The Breeders' Cup Classic is a Grade 1 thoroughbred weight for age horse race.

The Travers Stakes is a Grade I Thoroughbred horse race held at Saratoga Race Course in the USA.

The Santa Anita Handicap is a USA grade 1 Thoroughbred horse race. It is held yearly at Santa Anita Park, California.

A Grade I stakes race in the USA, the Kentucky Oaks is for three-year-old Thoroughbred fillies and takes place once a year in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Jockey Club Gold Cup founded in 1919, is a thoroughbred flat race of Grade 1 status. This USA stakes race is open to horses, male or female that are three-years or older.

The Hollywood Gold Cup - a Grade I stakes race held at Hollywood Park, USA is a race open to three year old and older thoroughbred horses.

The Belmont Stakes is held at Belmont Park, New York and is also known as the "Test of the Champion" due to the fact that it is the final race of the USA Triple Crown.

The Preakness Stakes, held at the Pimlico Race Course - Baltimore, Maryland is the second leg of the USA Triple Crown for three-year-olds.

The most famous horse race in the world had its 133rd running recently. This famous horse race is the first leg of the USA Triple Crown and offers punters the world over the greatest betting excitement.