Leopardstown chief delights at Christmas attendance and anticipates large British contingent for Dublin Racing Festival

Leopardstown chief executive Tim Husbands credited improvements made following last season's Dublin Racing Festival as key to the success of the track's Christmas meeting as attention turns to February's two-day bonanza which is expected to attract a huge contingent of British racegoers.

A total attendance of 62,748 at the track across its four festive days was up 699 on last year. Feedback from racegoers was particularly positive, which Husbands believes is down to the increased amenities at the track.

The attendance figure for day three was up 1,378 on last year, with 17,156 witnessing dual Gold Cup winner Galopin Des Champs defeat Fact To File to land his second Savills Chase.

"We were delighted with everything," said Husbands. "We had such exciting racing with over 62,000 racegoers and the feedback about the raceday experience has been really good. The improvements we made onsite after last year's DRF, with the increased bar space, marquee and additional food outlets, went really well. 

"Galopin Des Champs' performance in the Savills Chase was one of those moments in Irish racing history that is to be remembered. We had 19 different jockeys and 15 different trainers winning, which is testament to the competitiveness of the racing.

Galopin Des Champs: impressive winner of the Savills ChaseCredit: Patrick McCann

"We learned a lot of lessons from the DRF last year. We looked at the space we had, because it is quite a tight site. We had a 40-metre bar whereas last time we had a 25-metre one and we had a queuing system in place which made it a much more customer-friendly experience.

Tickets for the 2025 DRF must be purchased in advance, and Husbands is confident this is the right move to ensure racegoers get the best customer experience possible.

A huge contingent is set to travel across the Irish sea, with the UK responsible for 40 to 45 per cent of tickets already sold.

Ireland take on England in the Six Nations at the Aviva Stadium at 4.45pm on Saturday February 1, day one of the DRF, and the track is expecting plenty of rugby fans to make a weekend of it in Dublin.

Husbands said: "We had 20,000 on the Saturday at the DRF and it creaked a little bit. We wanted to get back to having a customer experience we could rely on and to give value for money for our Irish customers and the large contingent that travel over. 

"We're already looking at 40 to 45 per cent of all DRF tickets having gone to the UK. Obviously that will change as time moves on but it will be a heavy booking and I think we'll benefit on the Sunday by having a lot of English visitors who maybe have been to the rugby on Saturday."

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