The way we buy and sell almost everything has changed dramatically over the past two decades. Horse sales are no exception.
For generations, the traditional sale ring has been at the center of the harness industry. Horses are prepared for months, transported to a sales complex and presented to prospective buyers before eventually making their way through the ring.
That model remains an important part of the industry, but around the world it is increasingly being joined by another, the digital auction.
What was once viewed as an alternative or niche way to sell a horse is rapidly becoming a normal part of the international bloodstock market. Major auction companies in Australia, New Zealand, Europe and North America now conduct regular online sales, while buyers and sellers are becoming increasingly comfortable making significant transactions online.
For Australian harness racing, this presents an opportunity.
APG wants to jump on that opportunity. After over 3 decades of live yearling sales, we announced earlier this year that we would transition away from on-site yearling sales from 2027 and place a renewed focus on developing our online sales program.
Digital sales have moved into the mainstream
The numbers being generated by established digital platforms demonstrate just how far the concept has developed.
Across the Tasman, New Zealand Bloodstock-owned gavelhouse.com operates regular Standardbred auctions, providing a marketplace where New Zealand horses can be offered to both domestic and international buyers without travelling to a traditional sales complex.
Inglis Digital recorded more than $95 million in gross sales during 2025, with 130 lots selling for $100,000 or more through the platform.
In North America, Fasig-Tipton Digital sold more than 1,400 horses at a clearance rate of 79% in 2024. As they continued in 2025 their December Digital Sale alone sold 421 horses for more than $10.6 million.
Perhaps most significantly for the Standardbred industry, is that even major international breeders are beginning to incorporate digital selling into their traditional programs. In 2025, Hanover Shoe Farms announced it would offer a selection of yearlings through online auctions, citing economic pressures, staffing requirements and the growing prevalence of online sales as factors behind the decision.
Why does that matter for Australian harness racing?
The attraction of a digital marketplace goes well beyond simply being able to bid on a phone or computer.
For vendors, there is the potential to significantly reduce many of the costs and logistics associated with getting a horse to a physical sale. Transport, stabling, accommodation and staffing can all add to the expense of selling before the horse has even entered the ring.
There is also the ability to reach buyers far beyond the immediate location of the horse. A vendor in Queensland, Victoria, Western Australia or Tasmania can offer a horse into the same national marketplace without first having to transport it across the country.
For buyers, geography becomes far less important.
A prospective purchaser can study pedigrees, photographs, videos and other information from anywhere in Australia (or overseas) and have time to conduct further enquiries, arrange inspections or organise veterinary examinations before deciding whether to bid.
And then there is arguably the most important participant in every sale: the horse itself!
A digital sale allows a horse to remain in its normal environment while it is being marketed. Rather than travelling to a sales complex simply for the purpose of being offered, it only needs to make the journey to its new home once a sale has actually taken place.
More opportunities to trade
Digital auctions also give the industry something that can be difficult to achieve with physical sales… Frequency.
Staging an on-site auction is a major undertaking. A digital sale can be conducted far more regularly, allowing the marketplace to respond to participants throughout the year rather than concentrating trade around a small number of dates.
Following the launch of APG’s new online platform this year, the intention is to develop a regular sales calendar with an online auction approximately every two months.
That will begin with the Ready To Run Sale from December 1–3, followed by the National Yearling Sale from February 1–5, with further sales planned for April and June.
The aim is ultimately straightforward. Provide Australian harness racing with more opportunities to buy and sell horses, with fewer barriers to participating.
Starting a bigger conversation
Moving towards digital sales does not mean pretending the traditional sale ring has no advantages. It has atmosphere, it brings participants together and it allows horses to be inspected in one location and, for many people, sale day remains an important part of the industry calendar.
Digital selling offers something different.
Lower costs. Greater accessibility. A wider potential buying audience. More opportunities to trade throughout the year. And the ability to reduce unnecessary travel and disruption for horses.
Over the coming weeks, APG will take a closer look at each of those areas. What digital sales can mean for sellers, what they offer buyers, how they may benefit horses, and what Australia can learn from markets where online selling has already become an established part of the industry.
We will also hear from industry participants about what works, what could work better and what APG needs to get right as this new chapter develops.
The sale ring is changing. The question for Australian harness racing is not whether digital sales will become part of the market.
Digital sales are already here. The real question is, how do we make them work better for buyers, sellers and horses?
From APG Media
