BHA says betting revenue falls in first quarter of 2024

Despite making some progress with regards prize-money and the competitiveness of Premier fixtures, the British Horseracing Authority has reported a decline in overall betting turnover for the first three months of this year.

Wet weather has been blamed for disappointing results regarding jumps meetings, but key Flat cards have performed much better.

However, reflecting on overall figures, the BHA stated: “The impact of affordability checks and the challenging economic climate have contributed towards betting on racing having been in decline for some time and that trend has continued from January to March, when total betting turnover dropped by 5.9%.”

Attendance figures at racecourses up to the end of April were 6.4% lower than the same period in 2023, but it is not all doom and gloom.

“More positively, the betting companies report that the number of active bettors are up, in particular on Saturdays,” added the BHA.

“It is too early to be reaching any strong conclusions on betting numbers but, removing the effect of the Cheltenham Festival, Premier Racedays are outperforming betting on the rest of the fixture list; the decline at Premier Fixtures was 2.7%, compared with 5.2% across Core meetings.

“The introduction of Premier Raceday fixtures on Sundays has seen a particularly strong start, with betting turnover per race at these meetings 21.3% higher compared to equivalent fixtures in 2023.”

Total prize-money at Premier Fixtures increased by £3.2m, while competitiveness at Flat Premier meetings is running at a four-year high for average field size, percentage of races with eight or more runners and the percentage of races with odds-against favourites.

Upon publication of the 2024 fixture list, the BHA introduced a two-year trial of a number of initiatives designed to maximise opportunities around the biggest fixtures and increase the public’s engagement with horseracing.

Regarding the initial Q1 update, the governing body stated: “It is very important to stress that it is early days into the two-year trial to be reporting on numbers.

“Moreover, the period under review was beset by wet weather and a relatively high level of abandonments, including of some key meetings and races.

“It will be possible to form a more reliable view of how things are progressing once we get to the end of June and have data for the first half of the year.”