Boxing Day racing has been tradition for centuries… misguided policies mean the sport could soon look very different
THIS afternoon, families will shake off their post-Christmas Day cobwebs and head out for a day at the races.
For many, this is an annual tradition stretching back through generations, with trips to the likes of Kempton Park, Aintree, Wetherby and Wincanton, Fontwell and Sedgefield providing the perfect opportunity to spend quality time together at this special time of the year.
There are eight meetings taking place today and not only will many tens of thousands head through the gates, but countless more around the country will follow the action live on ITV — and maybe enjoy a bet or two while they do.
Over hundreds of years, horse racing has become deeply woven into the fabric of British culture and today’s centrepiece, the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase, has been an essential part of Boxing Day’s sporting calendar for decades.
It is a race that shapes careers and forges legends.
Desert Orchid won it four times and Kauto Star went one better with five, both roared home by passionate fans who will be back for more today to see the latest chapter unfold.
As well as appreciating the skill and courage of the horses and riders straining every sinew for sporting immortality, for a majority of those taking in the action, solving the puzzles posed by each race and putting a few quid on their fancies is an intrinsic part of what makes the day, and indeed the sport, great.
Regime of checks
Unfortunately, doing this is becoming increasingly hard for punters and racing stands to lose out if things don’t change course very soon.
Despite racing being a sector where problem gambling rates are low compared to other forms of gambling, racing has been hit in recent years by a regime of checks conducted by betting operators on consumer affordability.
These checks, which the Government admits are “inconsistent and onerous”, include being asked for personal documents like bank statements or even payslips at relatively low levels of spend.
Our 2023 Right To Bet survey of over 14,000 people found a quarter of racing betters had already experienced a check.
They have become fed up, feeling this is an attack on their individual right to spend their disposable income how they like.
Some have even taken their betting to the illegal market because it is so much easier to bet with unregulated bookies.
This has led to a £1.5billion loss of online racing turnover up to March 2024, according to Gambling Commission statistics, but no obvious reduction in the overall problem gambling rate.
The Gambling Commission is piloting whether checks on punters’ finances can be done in a frictionless way, which does not interrupt the customer experience.
If these checks are to be introduced, they must be truly frictionless and not create an environment that deters people from betting or drives them to the black market.
Almost two years after the previous government published its White Paper on gambling, it is hard not to feel that repeated warnings and the views of punters have not been properly considered.
All the racing industry is asking for is that checks on punters are proportionate and reasonable — if someone behaves in a way that indicates they have a gambling problem then the bookie should have to intervene and make checks on that customer.
But if they do not, they should be left alone and allowed to bet as they feel fit.
It is not just regulations around betting that are hitting racing’s finances.
We are continuing to push for meaningful reform of the Horserace Betting Levy, the sport’s central source of funding.
It has not changed since 2017 and its failure to keep pace with the changing realities of a severe economic downturn is seriously hurting the sport.
We are fast losing ground to our nearest rivals in Ireland and France.
Their superior prize money is partly behind why we have seen so many of the best horses head overseas.
Even just a small increase in the Levy will have a significant impact on British racing and make us more competitive globally.
Why does this matter? British racing is more than just a sport.
It is a cultural asset, one of our great soft power levers, with our races including the Derby, Royal Ascot and the Grand National revered around the world.
It is also an economic powerhouse, adding £4.1billion a year to the country’s economy as the second most-watched sport in the country.
At least 85,000 jobs in Britain are directly or indirectly linked to British racing.
And, perhaps, more importantly it is the beating heart of so many of our communities, urban as well as rural.
Racecourses — and there are 59 of them across Britain — are places that bind our communities together.
They are places where families — unlike many sports, children under-18 get free admittance to racecourses — friends and colleagues meet to enjoy a day, socialise, have great fun and maybe, if lucky, pick a winner or two.
Racing is a great day out for everyone of all ages and all backgrounds.
Only at a British racecourse will you see all levels of our society — from the road sweeper to our King or Queen — literally rubbing shoulders.
This is a sport to be cherished by the Government for all the good that it can do for this country and its people.
Certainly, the British public has not fallen out of love with the sport as attendances have held up well during recent years at a time when millions of people have been feeling the pinch and had to cut their cloth accordingly.
Meanwhile, events like the Cheltenham Festival, the Grand National and Royal Ascot remain landmark fixtures not just on our nation’s sporting calendar, but around the world.
The unintended consequences of well-meaning but misdirected policies are stark and, unless things change, Boxing Day could look very different for the future generations of those families heading to the races this afternoon.