Guardian Essential poll: record number of Australians are turning their backs on the Melbourne Cup

Growing disdain for gambling and animal cruelty concerns drive sliding interest in race that once ‘stopped the nation’

A record number of Australians are turning their backs on the Melbourne Cup, with more than two-thirds surveyed saying they have low or zero interest in the annual horse race.

Support for the Melbourne Cup has been sliding consistently for a number of years, but the Guardian Essential poll found just 9% of Australians said they had high interest in the race now – nearly half the proportion in 2025.

“The race that once stopped the nation is now just white noise for many,” Peter Lewis, chair of Essential Media, said.