Punters from as far away as Australia and the US will bet millions of euro on the Irish Derby at the Curragh on Sunday through a collaboration between Irish racing and the Hong Kong-based World Pool tote.
Epsom Derby winner Auguste Rodin, trained by Aidan O’Brien in Ballydoyle, Co Tipperary, will bid to add the Irish race to his CV at 3:40pm on Sunday.
The Curragh highlight, along with the seven other races scheduled, will potentially draw millions of euros in bets from punters in the Far East, Australia, the US and UK through the Hong Kong-based World Pool, which is joining forces with the Irish Tote for the day.
This will be the first time that betting on Irish Derby day races will be available through the World Pool. According to Curragh Racecourse chief executive Brian Kavanagh, the large amounts of cash bet on each race could mean better returns to winning punters.
Irish racing will also benefit as it will get 3 per cent of the total bet worldwide. “That could be very significant,” said Mr Kavanagh.
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Punters can take part by betting with the Irish Tote on Sunday, either on course or through a digital account. The pool offers win and place bets, as well as exotic bets such as predicting the first two or three home in each race.
“Customers will be betting into much bigger pools than usual,” added Mr Kavanagh.
Pool betting splits the total amounts bet between winning punters after the operator has taken out a percentage to cover costs. Bigger pools should create better “value” or returns on winning wagers.
The 126 Irish and British races that offered World Pool betting generated more than €600 million in turnover last year.
Legal restrictions in Hong Kong limit the number of international races that World Pool can offer. Just two Irish race days, the Derby and the Champion Stakes, at Leopardstown in September, are included in its current schedule, which also has eight British meetings.
