In the mid-1800's railway travel made it easy for allcomers to go coursing, and vast crowds attended the principal meetings at places like Altcar, Ashdown Park, and Stonehenge. Coursing has always been a sport for all.

In the late 1800's the Waterloo Cup was a major national event. Daily crowds of 75,000 were not uncommon, and the winners like Master M'grath and Fullerton were national heroes. The three times winner Master M'grath was even presented by royal command to Queen Victoria. Carrier pigeons carried the results to all major cities, and in London the Stock Exchange closed early when the news of the winners arrived.

Huge crowds also attended "park" or enclosed coursing when it flourished briefly in the 1880's. Companies bought up estates like Haydock, Kempton, and Gosforth (Newcastle) Parks and ran coursing meetings as a commercial leisure venture. The results, however, were too predictable which ruined the betting market and thus the attendances, and the coursing grounds were converted to the famous racecourses we know today. Although still popular in Ireland, there has been no enclosed coursing in England since 1914, and it is prohibited by National Coursing Club Rules.