The Kentucky Derby is known for the horses, outfits, and gambling. Every single Derby, there are millions of dollars being won and lost on the horse races, And this year at the 2025 Derby there was a record breaking amount gambled, exceeding 234 million dollars. Which is a lot of money for just a few horse races, and really shows how many people are “wasting,” there money, with over half of the people betting are loosing money or not gaining anything from it.
Gambling is highly addictive, and once people start they can’t stop, especially after a few expensive drinks. Almost all of the people over 21 at the Derby are either drinking, smoking, or throwing up from drinking too much. This can especially influence them to try and win a lot of money, and catch them in an endless cycle of gambling that can cause them to lose a lot of money or very rarely win some. As well as losing money and getting extremely drunk, gambling can cause people to lash out, or have violent behavior and out lashes of people gambling, can ultimately lead to more aggression and violence at the Derby itself.
Another negative affect of the Derby gambling is how easy it is. Anyone that attends or watches at home can gamble or bet on the horses because it is so easy to do. The access to Internet websites and other online resources to gamble make it incredibly easy for anyone to do, which draws them in to want more money or say a common phrase “just one more.” When people are so focused on the Derby and buying expensive outfits, spending money on drink, drugs, and gambling people forget about how insensitive it is to go there and spend a ton of money, just for most people to end up loosing most or all of the money given. Even though gambling is considered addictive and considered high risk high reward, this still doesn’t stop many people from doing it. Derby gambling has turned into a tradition, and not an option anymore. People that host Derby parties, watch at home, or attend the actual Derby are most likely going to bet on the horses in some way. Out of the 15 people that I asked, being family members, some friends, and a few faculty members if they attend and gamble during the Derby, 14 said they do gamble on Derby day, but only 7 people said they attend. All 7 that attended admitted to gambling on Derby day. which shows that the majority of people that don’t attend the Derby, still gamble in some way,.
Typically, the Derby is for the rich people to go get drunk and spend a lot of money. This takes away the awareness from the problems of poverty in downtown Louisville, which have recently been ranked 7th of all the cities in the US, with 22.4 % of children under 18 living in poverty. Along with parts of Louisville being a food desert, which negatively affects the already large homeless population. This puts into perspective that while people are spending their money on a horse race for a small chance to “win big!” there are real problems outside of Churchill Downs that are not getting the same attention.
