The British Racing Industry Flashcards
What is the governing body of the racing industry?
The British Horseracing Authority
It aims to promote racing in the UK and put effort into making horses and riders household names.
Looks after 60 racecourses in the UK (running and upkeep).
Does a lot of work making racing more appealing and accessible.
What are some key figures about the racing industry?
- Britain’s second largest sport (£3.45bn/year industry)
- 1450 fixtures held at 60 racecourses every year
- majority of betting is done on weekday races
- had 4 out of the top 10 attended sporting events - 3rd = Royal Ascot, 4 = Cheltenham, 9 = Epsom Derby, 10 = Aintree Grand National
What are the key racing metrics from 2007-2017?
The levy, average field size and number of owners have all decreased
The number of fixtures, number of races and prize money have all increased
The number of horses in training is roughly the same.
What areas are there in the racing industry?
There are funding, promotional/commercial, governance/regulation (+administration), racecourses, horsemen.
What were the BHS objectives for 2018?
- new database for the welfare of current and retired racehorses
- keeping racing fair and clean - helping racing to be more easily understood
- to grow the relationship between the audience and the betting industry
- fund incentives for trainers to enter bigger races
- setting up programmes to get international horses on to British tracks and vice versa
- looking after race staff, trainers, jockeys etc.
What is the Horseman’s Group?
A group that represents the interests of racehorse owners, trainers, jockeys, stable staff, and breeders. Acts as a cohesive group on behalf of its five member organisations in matters relating to the British horseracing industry
What are some of the key issues facing racing?
- betting is the main funding source. The move to more online shops at the expense of birck and mortar stores may impact on the funding recived for education, vet research, prize money etc. The bases for these websites may be moved abroad also to benefit from lax laws elsewhere.
- Brexit.
While the movement of horses is almost guaranteed by the Tripartite Agreement, free movement of people may suffer. A hard border may result in staff shortages and make it hard for existing staff to leave. 11% of all grooms are from Europe. - Possible hard border with Ireland may affect TB movement - 50% of all Irish TBs are brought to the UK
How many racing trainers are there in the UK?
550
How many race staff are there in the UK?
6500
How many licensed jockeys are there in the UK?
450
How many racecourse employees are there in the UK?
2200
How many people are employed in the UK breeding industry?
3000
How many other employees in the racing industry?
85,000
