Although it’s one of the most bet-upon events in the UK sporting calendar, the total betting spend at the Cheltenham Festival has never reached £1 billion before.
But that figure could be blown out of the water this week according to the predictions of OpenBet, the bet processing firm that works with many of the UK’s leading bookmakers.
And despite the number of offers and concessions seemingly decreasing in the lead-up to the four-day meeting, an Open Bet source believes that ‘more people are betting on Cheltenham than ever before.’
Snow Joke
The Cheltenham Festival will kick off on Tuesday, running through until ‘Gold Cup Day’ on Friday.
In amongst the 28 races are the ever-popular Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, Champion Chase, Mares’ Hurdle and the Champion Hurdle, in which Constitution Hill will be seeking redemption after missing the meeting through illness 12 months ago.
The second half of the week could be beset by an extraordinary shift in the weather. After basking in warm sunshine that reached 20 degrees Celsius over the weekend, punters heading for Cheltenham could be in for a nasty shock on Thursday, where sub-zero overnight temperatures – followed by snow and rain showers during the day – have been forecast.
That will chill the cockles of the hardy souls in the grandstands, while the ground may also be softened accordingly – how will that impact upon Galopin Des Champs’ chances of landing a third Gold Cup crown?
In the post-war era, only four horses have won three consecutive editions of the Cheltenham Gold Cup, with Willie Mullins – and punters – hoping that the nine-year-old can make it five on Friday.
Ladbrokes have confirmed that Galopin Des Champs is their most-backed horse heading into the festival, with potential liabilities likely to reach seven figures for the biggest bookmakers.
Whether the Gold Cup can reach the levels of the 2024 Grand National, at which Open Bet processed more than 100,000 bets per minute on raceday, remains to be seen.
Bookies Bashed?
The Cheltenham Festival has played host to some almighty gambles landing over the years… as well as heartbreak for punters.
Few will forget the Mares’ Hurdle in 2015, when Annie Power – comfortably clear of the field – tripped over the final obstacle and hit the deck.
She would have completed an infamous four-fold for acca backers, with the well-backed Douvan, Un De Sceaux and Faugheen obliging earlier on the Tuesday. Had Annie Power taken that final fence safely, bookies would have paid out a staggering £50 million – undoubtedly one of their worse days of trading in history.
But a decade later, another coup is on the cards on day one of the Festival… with bookies again bracing themselves for the possibility of a £50 million payout.
The action gets underway with the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle, where Kopek Des Bordes – from the ever-successful yard of Willie Mullins – will be sent off as favourite.
Majborough has been odds-on for the Arkle ever since trouncing the field by nine lengths in the Irish version of the race back in February. The likes of Ile Atlantique and Firefox could not get within ten lengths of Mullins’ youngster, who will be one of the most-backed fancies of day one.
The Irish trainer and billionaire racehorse owner Rich Ricci kept punters guessing over their festival plans for Lossiemouth, with an entry into the Champion Hurdle potentially on the cards.
However, the mare will instead take on her fellow sex in the Mares’ Hurdle instead; another odds-on favourite for Mullins to cheer home.
Should that hat-trick land, it will be squeaky bum time for the bookies as Constitution Hill returns to Cheltenham for another crack at the Champion Hurdle. As imperious as ever this term, Nicky Henderson’s horse is another that will be approaching 1/2 favouritism by the time the race gets underway.
Although the odds on that four-fold, around 7/1 at the time of writing, aren’t life changing for any one single punter, the sheer weight of money backing the acca in the UK and Ireland could give bookmakers one of their darkest days in years.
“We expect the quartet to feature in many thousands of accumulators on Tuesday, which could see liabilities on a par with this day ten years ago, when Annie Power’s last-hurdle fall spared the layers a £50m hammering,” said Coral’s David Stevens.
“It will be no exaggeration to say that industry liabilities will once again be in the tens of millions, as they were ten years ago.”