The 171st Grand National took place at Aintree in Liverpool this past Saturday as 10/1 odds Tiger Roll and jockey David Russell finished victorious. The long-time horse race is synonymous with British sport due to its storied history and large prize money. Even if you are not a fan of horse racing, this grand event has produced massive crowds since the first race. This year’s opening day attendance was an Aintree record, with 35,581 people making the journey to Merseyside including members of the Royal Family.
The storied history, high attendance figures, and quality of the actual horses and jockeys all push for punters to become very active during the event. Experienced gamblers of horse racing use all kinds of strategies to determine who they hope will land them a few extra pounds, like studying the recent form of the horse. For whatever reason, punters believe that any horse sporting green has a higher chance of winning simply because they are wearing the colour.
An interesting note about the whole gambling process is that female punters are betting on horses that may have worse odds in order to add more cash to their wallets. According to the Daily Star, 32 percent of women were looking at odds between 25/1 and 75/1 versus only 18 percent of men do the same.
Do you have any superstitions when you place a wager? Well, you’re not alone. According to Betway Insider, “Horses sharing names with a relative, place of birth or another emotional connection is the most popular way of picking which horse to back in the Grand National”.
The betting industry across the UK has pushed what was already an incredibly large day in sports for Britain to an equally important day as the FA Cup Final. The competition between the various betting powerhouses like Paddy Power or Ladbrokes for the athletes in the Grand National is an important event on its own. It’s fair to say that whoever has the best odds for a favourite is going to see a large amount of activity on their respective website.
Aintree’s popularity within the UK is what makes it such an important event. It is the epitome of British sport because it is cherished by many make it staple in many people’s sporting calendar year.
