by Renee Israel
The horse racing industry in Britain has a bright future; moreover, it is the
second largest sport in UK, with football occupying the number-one position in
popularity.
The industry generates innumerable jobs and plenty of revenue and is
associated with events of international fame such as the Royal Ascot, the
Cheltenham Festival, the Grand National Meeting, and the Derby. Organizers hope
that the brand new British Champion Series will soon form part of this list.
Punters can place bets in a wide range of ways in betting shops, at online
sportsbooks, through mobile devices like Pad and iPhone, with IPTV online,
terrestrial TV, commercial TV, and residential pay television. Simon Bazalgette,
the chief executive of the largest UK horse racing group The Jockey Club,
declares that the industry is booming.
Simon Bazalgette on UK Horse Racing Industry
Simon Bazalgette is one of the most influential people in the UK horse racing
industry, having joined it in 2004. He is the head of The Jockey Club, one of
the largest UK racecourse groups in regards to having the largest attendances,
revenue, and prize money contributions.
Admitting that he is a bit cautious about the horse racing level agreement
for this year, Bazalgette stated that it will lead bookmakers to invest as much
as £72.4 million in horse racing the following year.
While the British Horse Racing Authority states that the payment is still
low, Bazalgette says that it still has a long way to go from what it has been in
the past, adding that it has reversed horse racing trends to a considerable
extent.
The advantages of the current system are that it enables more prize money
contributions, solving the problems of small-sized racing fields.
Thanks to a recent agreement signed with Betfair, the prize money
contribution has gone up a bit more since the gaming company is contributing
£250,000 to the industry this year through The Jockey Club.
Bazalgette also feels the need for more sponsors in addition to big names
such as John Smith Beer, Investec, and Quipco, which are already sponsoring the
Grand National, the Derby, and the British Champions Series, respectively.
Right now, attractive travel packages are being offered for popular horse
racing events, and hopes are high that the industry gets some more commercial
partners in the near future.
The Jockey Club already has a commercial partner in Jaguar and recently got
into a deal with Thomson Sport. Loyalty schemes are also being launched to
encourage people to visit racing events more often.
