Ascot leads racing’s ‘Premier League’ tracks in exploiting overseas markets | Ascot

Having gone into the busy vacation schedule amid speak of plummeting betting turnover and a black gap on the game’s stability sheet, there’s a minimum of a smattering of causes to be cheerful as racing units off into 2025.

The home Christmas programme delivered on each degree, with Structure Hill, Sir Gino and The New Lion specifically hinting at a long-awaited revival in UK leaping’s competitiveness on the spring festivals. Galopin Des Champs, in the meantime, arrange an try to change into the primary three-time Gold Cup winner for 20 years with an emphatic success at Leopardstown’s four-day assembly, the place Brighterdaysahead additionally regarded like an thrilling new expertise over hurdles.

And whereas the climate worn out the jumps programme on the primary weekend of 2025, Ascot selected the marginally odd time of 2pm on Sunday afternoon to announce a giant increase to the prize fund for Britain’s most prestigious all-aged Flat race, the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes in late July. This yr’s race can be price £1.5m, inserting it alongside the Derby in June because the nation’s most precious race, whereas it’s going to even be Britain’s first “run at no cost” contest, with entry charges – apart from supplementaries – refunded to homeowners if their horses finally go to submit.

Even a £1.5m prize fund is, admittedly, a great distance wanting the cash on provide for among the world’s different high 12-furlong races on turf. There may be €5m (£4.15m) within the kitty for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp in October and $5m (£4m) on provide for the Breeders’ Cup Turf in early November, whereas the 1.085m yen (£6m) Japan Cup trumps all of them.

However the further quarter of one million for the King George, which can guarantee it’s the richest race ever staged at Ascot, continues to be a big assertion of intent by the monitor at a time when, for example, the Jockey Membership has introduced a prize-money freeze at its 15 tracks in 2025. So how has Ascot – and never for the primary time – managed to buck the development?

One level that ought to most likely be made on the outset, not least out of equity to the remainder of Britain’s racecourses massive and small, is that Ascot has a one thing of a head-start by way of its possession (by the reigning monarch), its historical past, its distinctive showpiece assembly in June and the invaluable brand-recognition that comes connected, each in Britain and around the globe.

Ascot additionally has a wonderful monitor document for exploiting its distinctive attraction to the complete, attracting horses from around the globe to the Royal assembly specifically.

However there was a nod too to a different, newer increase to the monitor’s earnings in its determination to refund entry charges to the homeowners of horses within the King George subject, which can price round £19,000 per runner.

“Now we have been enthusiastic about the idea of ‘Run For Free’ for the King George for a while as a mechanism for incentivising runners at decision-making time,” Nick Smith, the director of racing and public affairs, stated.

“Area sizes are crucial, particularly within the World Pool period, and we hope that connections of horses that aren’t on the high of the betting would possibly see this as a great purpose to go for the large goal, particularly with document prize cash on provide.”

It could come as a shock to many common punters that we are actually dwelling within the “World Pool period”, however promoting British racing to the massive pool-betting market in Asia has change into an more and more necessary supply of funds for elite tracks around the globe since World Pool launched at Royal Ascot in 2019.

Final yr’s schedule had expanded to incorporate race-days in Saudi Arabia and Dubai – the place betting regionally is strictly prohibited – in addition to Eire, Germany, South Africa and Australia, whereas seven programs in Britain – Ascot, Newmarket, Goodwood, York, Epsom, Sandown and Newbury – had a minimum of one fixture with a World Pool race.

A full day on the World Pool schedule is known to be price between £300k and £650k to the monitor relying on turnover, and turnover is carefully linked to subject sizes, so refunding entry charges might make a number of sense if it ensures a double-figure subject for Ascot’s status occasion.

There’s a sense through which World Pool is permitting tracks like Ascot, Goodwood and York to observe the instance set by the Premier League in exploiting their instantaneous model recognition in abroad markets.

As racing waits – and waits, and waits – for the federal government to handle its requests for levy reform and its issues over affordability checks, it is a crucial further income stream, albeit one which – just like the EPL’s riches – is a profit to a really restricted variety of tracks. It additionally will depend on the persevering with enthusiasm and involvement of punters who’re 6,000 miles away in China.

World Pool might be not the reply to all of racing’s prayers, in different phrases, however it’s actually plugging some gaps at a troublesome time – whereas Ascot, as soon as once more, is underlining its significance to the game as a complete.