Irish punters at Cheltenham© Photo Healy Racing
Almost a third of tickets for last year's Cheltenham Festival were bought by Irish racegoers.
A total of 57,375 tickets, which is approximately 30% of all those sold for the Festival, were purchased for those who crossed the Irish Sea to attend the four-day extravaganza in March, according to an Economic Impact Analysis (EIA) carried out by the University of Gloucestershire on behalf of Cheltenham Racecourse.
The visitors spent E22.3 million at the 2016 Festival spread across travel, accommodation, tickets and entertainment.
The study also showed that since 2010, the number of Irish ticket bookers at the Festival has increased by 22%.
Ian Renton, regional director of the South West region of The Jockey Club, said: "The Festival is one the biggest and most successful sporting occasions of the year involving Britain and Ireland. Over the years, it has become synonymous with Ireland through the participation of its great horses, trainers, jockeys, owners and staff.
"This is the first time we have studied the economic impact of Ireland's participation and the results demonstrate the very significant ongoing role played by Irish fans to the success of the Festival. Irish fans make up close to one-third of our attendance over the week, helping to create a truly unique atmosphere and experience for all racegoers.
"Our mutual love affair with the Festival, of course, involves so much more than statistics. Our shared love and passion for our sport creates an enduring relationship and long may that continue. We look forward greatly to hosting our Irish racegoers once again in a few weeks' time for the 2017 renewal."
Brian Kavanagh, chief executive of Horse Racing Ireland, said: "When Ian was appointed at Cheltenham, I told him he now had one of the most important jobs in Irish racing! We have been aware for some time of the value of the racing and breeding industries to the Irish economy which is estimated at over E1.1 billion per annum, so it is fascinating to now see the value of the Irish impact on Cheltenham.
"Ireland has long had a love affair with Cheltenham because they put on a wonderful festival where we see the best National Hunt horses in the world taking each other on.
"The importance of Cheltenham to Ireland goes beyond just the punters and racegoers as winning there is of vital importance to owners, breeders, trainers and jockeys and can be the highlight of a career, or the making of a horse's pedigree.
"Cheltenham has often been described as the Olympic Games of jump racing and we are all counting the days to 14th March."
The Irish raiding party enjoyed a brilliant 2016 Cheltenham, with victories for Annie Power in the Champion Hurdle, Vautour in the Ryanair Chase and Don Cossack in the Gold Cup the highlights among 15 victories.
