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MacMum

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I could not disagree any more.

The racing industry is not a sport. It's an industry supported entirely by gambling. I hate it.
Like it or not, racing is a sport, you may hate it, but millions enjoy it........and I did say top 2 sporting organisations. If you disagree, please name a sport in this country that is bigger than those two.
 

pepsi

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Like it or not, racing is a sport, you may hate it, but millions enjoy it........and I did say top 2 sporting organisations. If you disagree, please name a sport in this country that is bigger than those two.
It's not a sport. The animal is winning the race. Same as car racing. The best car wins. The best horse/dog wins.
 

pepsi

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The spring carnival would still go on I reckon. Definitely the Melbourne Cup.

As long as you know that's what supposed to happen.
My comment was over the top, directed at the statement that horse racing is the 2nd biggest sports organisation in the country.

Jockeys and car drivers are important. But if they are not sitting in one of the best cars or best horses, they won't win.
 

imadodgyumpire

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On another note. They've got Matty G doing to greyhound ads.

In the past week. Ro Ro was approving of Simon Lethlean's appointment at the saints. Making out that the public's outrage was over the top.

Normally it'd go in one ear and out the other. But it's always stuck in my mind how outraged Ro Ro was at Chris Gayle. So I find it peculiar when he thinks others are being overly sensitive.
 

peternorth

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I think that generally as an industry, the media are fairly accepting of afl players and the afl in general. afl journos know the sport is small fry on the world scale, it's not like they can pick up and go to another country or continent to find employment. They must be aware of their surroundings and the money
 

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MacMum

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My comment was over the top, directed at the statement that horse racing is the 2nd biggest sports organisation in the country.

Jockeys and car drivers are important. But if they are not sitting in one of the best cars or best horses, they won't win.

It is one of the two biggest sporting organisations (industries) in australia....AFL is the other, fact.
 

nobbyiscool

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It is one of the two biggest sporting organisations (industries) in australia....AFL is the other, fact.
What is the measurement that you're using to state this "fact"? Racing doesn't get the sponsorship, the tv money, the tv ratings or the live attendance (on average) of cricket, NRL or A-League. Off the top of my head, those are probably the most significant measures of success, so I'm interested what you're using to claim that racing is close to the top 4, let alone "factually" in the top 2.
 

MacMum

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OK. In what basis are they 2nd biggest "sporting organisation?" Is it revenue? And is that inclusive of betting?
Employment numbers would be a good start..

...aside from being a spectator sport, it provides full or part time jobs for approx. 250,000 people and 300,000 have a direct interest as owners or members of syndicates...then you have the indirect industries as a result of horse racing....such as farriers, grain and horse feed suppliers, equipment (saddles, jockey clothing, floats etc)..

...also contributes 2.1 billion to the victorian economy per year.....and that's just victoria.
 
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nobbyiscool

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Employment numbers would be a good start..

...aside from being a spectator sport, it provides full or part time jobs for approx. 250,000 people and 300,000 have a direct interest as owners or members of syndicates...then you have the indirect industries as a result of horse racing....such as farriers, grain and horse feed suppliers, equipment (saddles, jockey clothing, floats etc)..

...also contributes 2.1 billion to the victorian economy per year.....and that's just victoria.
Jesus Christ :rolleyes:

I've spent much of my adult life working for unions, and even I think that "employment numbers" is a ridiculous way to gauge the "size" of a sport. If you're doing that you need to do it for all sports, not just the one you're advocating for. So you're adding up every person who gets a few bucks to coach a soccer team, to referee a game, to play, to work with the association; everyone who sells a jersey at rebel sport, everyone who has worked at a stadium in the last year, everyone who works at a factory who makes every club teams jersey, even the people that work at the company that sponsors teams and leagues (which, for example, is everyone who works at Westfield.)

It is beyond ridiculous to try and measure a sports size in that way, cos there's no way that it's truly measurable, and there's no way to compare apples with apples.

Also, when it comes to contribution to the economy, there's also no real way to measure this, because everything that is gambled gets measured at least twice (when it comes in and when it goes out). And given most people end up wagering any winnings multiple times, it's the same money that's getting counted multiple times.

As I said yesterday - we already have a radio station dedicated to racing, and no one listens to it. No one needs SEN to become a second.
 

peternorth

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Macmum does raise an interesting point about employment. There are indirect beneficiaries, true. It extends also to the gambling industry. I have a friend who works for tabcorp, she is employed and works some weekends when its busy busy busy. For example afl GF day and Melb cup.

But tabcorp have stakes in all sports. So in terms of employment, does she get added the horse racing industry, or AFL, or soccer, or cricket etc? Or is she as a number added to each industrys employment ranks?

Im confused.
 

nobbyiscool

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Macmum does raise an interesting point about employment. There are indirect beneficiaries, true. It extends also to the gambling industry. I have a friend who works for tabcorp, she is employed and works some weekends when its busy busy busy. For example afl GF day and Melb cup.

But tabcorp have stakes in all sports. So in terms of employment, does she get added the horse racing industry, or AFL, or soccer, or cricket etc? Or is she as a number added to each industrys employment ranks?

Im confused.
Do people that work at AAMI Park get counted towards football, rugby league, rugby union, monster trucks or Paul McCartney's gig?

Do people that work at Etihad get counted towards AFL, football, cricket, speedway or Taylor Swift's gig?

Jesus, even the people that you would think are obviously employed "in the racing industry" aren't straight forward - Flemington, for example, host dozens of non-racing events throughout the year. Every year during the Royal Melbourne Show they have dozens and dozens of staff who work for 3 weeks on show parking.

As I said above, trying to rely on "employment numbers" is ******* ridiculous, cos there's no way in the world that you can measure it. Is the trainers wife who helped out cleaning the stables cos they were short-handed counted as an "employee"? I bet she is if you're the "racing industry" with a vested interest who is fudging numbers.

I'll add only add one more thing, cos we're way off topic - if the "racing industry" was as big as Macmum is trying to suggest, I doubt whether they'd be flogging off bits of one of it's most iconic racecourses to developers who want to ultimately encircle the track with ******* apartment buildings.
 

imadodgyumpire

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I'll add only add one more thing, cos we're way off topic - if the "racing industry" was as big as Macmum is trying to suggest, I doubt whether they'd be flogging off bits of one of it's most iconic racecourses to developers who want to ultimately encircle the track with ******* apartment buildings.
Which track are you talking about?
Football as we know it would be dead if pokies money was removed from the Victorian clubs.
Really? Can you give us a brief description why?
 
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