Sportsbet backs WA volunteers with $600k pledge

Sportsbet is turning its support for WA racing into a community commitment worth anywhere up to $640,000, pledging to donate its share of prize money from this year's Western Trilogy to the Volunteer Fire & Rescue Service Association of Western Australia (VFRSAWA).

The initiative, titled Cheer for Charity, links Sportsbet's slot runners in the TabTouch Sandgroper and the BYD Quokka to a simple idea: when WA racing performs on the biggest stage, regional and metropolitan communities should share in the result.

Across the two races, Sportsbet's runners — Canya Excite Me in the Sandgroper and Rey Magnerio in The Quokka — will race with a broader purpose, carrying the potential to deliver significant funding for volunteer fire and rescue members who protect communities right across Western Australia.

Importantly, the donation is linked to race outcomes, not betting outcomes. If the runners earn prize money, Sportsbet's share will be donated directly to VFRSAWA.

Nathan Arundell, Chief Commercial Officer at Sportsbet, said the initiative highlights the deep connection between racing and regional communities.

"WA racing plays an important role in regional life, supporting local economies, bringing people together and sustaining communities well beyond the track," Mr Arundell said.

"WA racing plays an important role in regional life, supporting local economies, bringing people together and sustaining communities well beyond the track"

"Volunteer fire and rescue members are part of that same fabric, and Cheer for Charity is about recognising and supporting the work they do to keep West Australian communities safe."

VFRSAWA Executive Officer, Tim Sonsee, welcomed the pledge, noting the potential to dramatically boost the Association's impact in supporting more than 90 Volunteer Fire & Rescue service Brigades within their local communities across Western Australia.

"Over 90 per cent of all emergencies within Western Australia are responded to by volunteers," said Mr Sonsee.

"Our role is to support, inspire and be a voice for those volunteers serving their community. Member brigades stretch from Kununurra to Esperance, and as far east as Laverton, providing a critical network of support for communities outside of the metropolitan area and the larger regional cities with Career Fire and Rescue firefighters.

"We're incredibly grateful for all public donations to the VFRSAWA, and we'll have many members cheering their support for Rey Magnerio in this weekend's Quokka," said Mr Sonsee.

"We're incredibly grateful for all public donations to the VFRSAWA, and we'll have many members cheering their support for Rey Magnerio in this weekend's Quokka"

VFRSAWA works alongside WA Fire & Rescue professionals, with trained volunteers responding to fires, rescues, road crashes and emergencies across the State.

Depending on the final donation amount, funding could support volunteer membership costs, training and recruitment, or firefighter welfare.

The first chapter of Cheer for Charity will be written at the Sandgroper, before attention turns to WA's richest race, the BYD Quokka on 18 April, where the potential donation reaches its peak.