The 2025 Grand National certainly delivered.
A reported 600 million people worldwide tuned in to watch, with 5.2 million of those viewers coming from ITV’s coverage.
They got to see 33/1 Nick Rockett, trained by Willie Mullins and ridden by his son Patrick Mullins, make history at the Aintree showpiece, marking yet another iconic Grand National underdog story. Not many punters saw it coming, but those who did cashed in big.
Speaking of betting, it’s estimated that around £250 million — yes, a quarter of a billion pounds — was wagered on this year’s Grand National.
This makes it one of the most successful Grand Nationals for bookmakers in recent memory — and it comes despite the tightening grip that affordability checks currently have on punters.
Quarter-Billion Grand National Shows Horse Betting Is Still Strong
When affordability checks were first introduced to sports betting back in 2024, many feared the worst for British horseracing.
This is an industry that’s heavily reliant on punters to fund prize money, support racecourses, and keep everything above water, which is why there was so much backlash against them.
Interestingly, though, even though affordability checks have caused a serious decrease in the number of horse bets being placed, they don’t seem to have stopped major events like the Grand National from drawing huge betting interest.
What we know so far is that an estimated £250 million was bet on this year’s Grand National. There were also plenty of big punter wins, too.
One Ladbrokes customer even managed to bag himself £61k from an £8 bet, backing Nick Rockett, I Am Maximus, and Grangeclare West to finish in that order as part of a combination tricast. It was smiles all round for lucky punters like this.
Ahead of the race itself, British fans were vocal about how they planned to bet. OLGB found that just over 1 in 5 Brits were going to place at least one bet, with 51% of the bettors choosing their horse based on its name rather than genuine win potential.
Most interesting of all, though, was that 30% of punters claimed they’d be betting less on the Grand National this year because of the rising cost of living.
You can use value betting software to help with this, as it’s a great way to place smarter bets and stretch whatever budget you might have, but it’s also clear to see that British punters don’t have as much cash to splash as they used to.
£10 Million Was Bet on the Black Market — British Horse Racing Faces a Growing Problem
One of the downsides to the 2025 Grand National is that experts believe anywhere up to £10 million was bet over the weekend using the black market.
In other words, punters were using illegal underground gambling sites, most likely to avoid affordability checks. This has been a serious problem in British horseracing for a while — but it only seems to have gotten worse since 2024.
The Racing Post recently reported that 5% of horse punters have used the black market over the past 12 months. That’s not good.
And it highlights a terrifying direction of travel that’s largely been caused by affordability checks and the trust between punters and bookies starting to wear thin.
Betting Tax Increase Could Be About to Make Things Worse
The Government looks set to make life even more difficult for British horseracing if its proposed tax rate increase on horse betting goes ahead before 2027.
Changes would mean punters face higher costs and reduced returns on successful bets, which is something that nobody wants to see happen.
It’s already at a point where many British punters feel like they’re being pushed to the black market, so reducing their potential winnings in the future will likely be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
In response to a proposed tax increase, the British Horseracing Association had this to say:
“We are deeply concerned about the prospect of any tax harmonisation which places horserace betting on a par with online games of chance, and believe that there would be significant unintended consequences for both racing’s finances and its workforce if the government moves to a single duty.”
When you add a potential tax increase to an already growing list of problems for the sport, including affordability checks and cash-strapped punters, it’s not looking too great.
Understandably, this is why the BHA and other British horseracing stakeholders are worried — despite the fact that the recent 2025 Grand National showed horse racing still has major pulling power.
Conclusion
It’s a fascinating time for British horse racing.
Up until 2024, everything was going about as well as it possibly could, from booming attendances to more punters betting than ever.
Then “affordability checks” were introduced, leading to tons of revenue being lost by bookies and an overall downturn in the number of people placing bets. Many of these punters have since turned to the black market — and there’s no sign of them coming back.
Thrown on top of this is the potential prospect of tax increases on future horse bets, which (again) is going to make an already struggling market even more vulnerable.
However, it’s not all bad news.
The recent 2025 Grand National — where an estimated £250 million was bet by punters — shows that there’s still a strong desire out there to bet on the biggest and best horse racing events. It’s especially impressive when you consider how cash-strapped most punters are at the moment, too.
So, what will this mean moving forward? It’s difficult to say.
If tax increases are indeed introduced, it’s going to harm British horseracing even more. The alarm bells should definitely be ringing, that’s for sure.
This year’s Grand National does still provide hope, though, and is a strong sign that horse betting can return to its former glory.
