As all the horse racing fanatics will know, Cheltenham Festival 2018 is just around the corner. The annual event attracts thousands of viewers and visitors worldwide, and is well known for its atmosphere – most notably the “Cheltenham roar”. The horse racing odds available also means that hundreds on millions of pounds are expected gambled during the week.
This year’s Cheltenham Festival is a momentous one for the event as its prize pool of around £5 million means it has the largest prize pool of any Cheltenham festival. Although there are numerous reasons why the prize pools have increased over the years, the main reason is due to the investment from the Jockey Club. Since the 18th century, the club have invested in the sport by opening new racecourses, improve existing ones, and investing in training and racecourse facilities in order to bring them to the highest standard possible. These investments and improvements have led to the sport becoming very popular and, as a result, the prize pool has also improved because of this investment. [Read more…]