Charlie Parker: Black-market betting bites while levy reform drifts

There were many heartfelt words and comments made following the passing of Joe Saumarez Smith last month. I first met Joe when I joined the BHA Board a few years ago. We immediately hit it off, not surprising given our shared love of horseracing, betting, cycling, football (despite his love of Arsenal), and all other sports you can think of. He will be greatly missed by the industry, his many friends and obviously his family.

The BHA will also miss him as, despite the fact his time as Chair was coming to an end, we had hoped that Joe would still play an active role on the international stage where he was making such a positive impression. Joe made a fabulous contribution to the industry and we will remember him with great affection and fondness.

The recent report on black-market betting, as reported by the Racing Post, showed some shocking results. A 552% increase in visitor traffic to 22 unlicensed betting websites (between 2021 and 2024) is a clear sign that the affordability checks that the Gambling Commission have been promoting are actually making the situation worse.

It is estimated that betting turnover on racing has fallen sharply in the last two years, with the Levy Board reporting a 20% decline. Of course, there are multiple factors at play here, but the checks have to be a central reason for both the drop and the flight to the black market. There has been no evidence produced that can show how these checks have materially helped problem gambling and, on the face of it, they seem to have contributed to a significant hit to racing’s coffers.

The government white paper specifically identified that the measures proposed would directly impact racing’s finances and made a reference to the reform of the levy to compensate for the impact. While the proposals have not been adopted, the affordability element is still being heavily used by the Gambling Commission with no reliable data to suggest it is helping – and of course we haven’t seen any levy reform to plug the gap. The industry needs to continue to campaign on affordability, pointing out the damage that has been caused and the lack of credible evidence that the measures are doing anything other than encouraging the increase in black-market betting, which of course falls outside of the levy net.

The government is pushing for a voluntary agreement between the betting firms and the industry for levy reform and whilst this may seem sensible, there is the question of why the bookmakers would voluntarily agree to pay more. We must tackle this issue from a different angle; the bookies need a healthy industry to sustain their businesses so looking at a partnership approach may be the only realistic chance of a compromise.

There has been some enthusiasm around the concept of a growth fund – perhaps this idea can be developed further. However, the government’s preferred approach is that any change would not be done on a statutory basis, therefore getting agreement from all bookmakers who currently pay the levy could be very tricky.

Whilst it is still early in the year, time is ticking on the review of the various costs and deductions that are charged by the BHA to owners. This review sits alongside the delayed release of the new IT system developed by the joint venture enterprise between the BHA and Weatherbys that is Racing Digital. The new release date appears to be the end of April. The proposed changes to owners’ fees were announced several years ago – this will reduce the level of costs and hopefully simplify things. However, the broader review needs to identify what is being charged and why as there are already duplications both in terms of fees and services provided.

The two great festivals for National Hunt racing are almost upon us and most will agree that this is the pinnacle of jump racing. The facts surrounding prize-money in the jumps game are, however, less exhilarating. Various factors are at play, but the bare facts are that races have been cut and purses are suffering. Whilst the industry presses ahead with Project Pace and progress is being made on commercial partnerships between horsemen and racecourses, it must remain a core output that the National Hunt game is looked after – it’s under pressure and action is needed.