I've been sitting on this since it landed in my inbox at 11am! The press release was embargoed until midday but now that we are passed that I thought I'd share the details of what has been agreed by the BHA regarding changes to the 2024 Fixture List and the race programme as a whole: BHA Board approves core principles for innovation and improvement in the 2024 fixture list 25/05/2023 EMBARGOED NO APPROACH UNTIL 12PM Principles shaped by the work of the sport’s Commercial Committee and unanimously approved by the BHA Board Innovations introduced in 2024 aim to grow the sport’s reach, appeal to new fanbases and better engage existing customers Changes represent vital first step in longer-term improvements to the structure, funding and promotion of the racing product Innovative and wide-ranging changes to the 2024 fixture list based on several core principles have been approved by the Board of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). Developed as part of British racing’s cross industry strategy, the principles – which will be implemented and tested over an initial two-year period – represent an important first step in delivering more substantive changes to the racing product. They have been shaped by the work of the industry’s Commercial Committee – consisting of representatives from the BHA, racecourses, owners, breeders, and licensed personnel – as part of efforts across the sport to develop a long-term, sustainable model for British racing. The agreement of core principles for the 2024 fixture list is the first phase in the sport’s strategy to grow its fanbase, maximise engagement and generate increased revenues, which in turn will see increased prize money levels. Work around the future racing product was identified by industry leaders as the most time-critical aspect of the strategy development, and this has therefore been prioritised to ensure that fundamental changes can be incorporated into the 2024 fixture list. This wider strategic work is looking at a broad suite of customer-focused and data-driven initiatives around how the sport is structured, funded, presented, and promoted – work that will be further developed in the coming months. This sits alongside associated workstreams in key areas such as racehorse ownership, equine welfare, integrity, industry people and corporate social responsibility. The principles agreed unanimously by the BHA Board that will inform the 2024 fixture list, include: A “Premier” racing tier with higher prize money and more competitive top-quality racing featuring the best horses A two-hour “shop window” on most Saturday afternoons with three fixtures, including up to two Premier fixtures, taking place during the peak customer engagement period (usually 2pm-4pm). Other Saturday fixtures will take place outside the protected window Piloting six Sunday evening floodlit fixtures between January and March 2024 – a time of the week where betting activity tends to be strong Boosting Core racing – moving more fixtures later in the day in response to changing customer preferences, making the most of our Core fixtures during major festivals and supporting Summer Jumping More competitive racing with a reduction in 300 Jump races across the year, and some Flat races moved from summer to autumn/early winter, based on data showing these measures will help increase field sizes and betting Better quality racing on Sunday afternoons, including Premier fixtures. More information about these core principles can be found here. These measures are supported by extensive research and analysis, underpinned for the first time by data from betting companies, racecourses, and the Horserace Betting Levy Board (HBLB). The work has also been informed by customer insight, including from the Horserace Bettors’ Forum (HBF), and input from the industry’s Fixtures and Funding Group. Further detail to support the implementation of the core principles will be developed and refined in the coming weeks and used to inform the 2024 fixture list. This will include funding submissions to the HBLB to support the delivery of the strategy, particularly around areas of higher prize money levels. There will also be ongoing dialogue about how best to support racing’s people as the sport innovates the racing product and seeks to meet the changing preferences of its customers. This will initially include discussions and recommendations around the number of breaks in the calendar, while a long-term strategy to future-proof racing’s workforce is developed by the Industry People Board. Joe Saumarez Smith, Chair of the BHA, said: “The BHA Board endorsed and approved these recommendations because it was clear to us that they were necessary and in the best interests of the sport. “The information that was presented by the sport’s Commercial Committee included detailed consideration of both the upside and downside of all proposals. This allowed the Board to make its decisions based on the complete picture. “It is inevitable that not all parties agree with all proposals. But it was for this reason that the new governance structure was agreed by the industry, so that difficult decisions can be made and there can be progress in the best interests of the whole sport. “The changes will be tested over an initial two-year period and will be closely evaluated to see how well they work, with the aim of permanently adopting the things that have been a success. “I would like to thank the Commercial Committee, and everyone who has been involved in this process, for their work to date. It has been a truly collaborative, cross-industry effort.” Julie Harrington, Chief Executive of the BHA, said: “When the industry’s leaders came together in autumn last year, we agreed unanimously that innovation in the way the sport is presented is an absolute necessity. “The core principles approved by the BHA Board were identified as the most time sensitive area and the foundation of our wider approach. “There is still a huge amount to do as we seek to grow and future-proof British racing, but the development of a fixture list that seeks to attract new fans and grow the appeal of our sport to existing customers represents an important first step.” David Jones, Chair of the cross-industry Commercial Committee, said: “I’m very grateful to all members of the Commercial Committee for their contributions through this extensive process. The proposals that have been made by the sport are based on an unprecedented use of data and research, significant consultation and a high quality of debate. “The sport needs to progress with the measures that have been agreed by the Board, in order to bring about the growth which will benefit all parts of the industry.” Notes to editors: 1. Racing Product - Core principles More information about the core principles that will inform the development of the 2024 fixture list can be found here. 2. British racing’s Industry Strategy British racing’s Industry Strategy, supported by the governance changes made in late 2022, provides an opportunity to strengthen the sport’s future and Britain’s position as a world leader in thoroughbred racing and breeding. The objective of the strategy is to create a sustainable model for British racing, enabling revenue growth, social licence and innovation. There are six customer-focussed elements within the strategy, including: Future Racing Product (to which the principles issued today relate), Owners, Betting, Fans (engagement & promotion), Investment, and Product presentation, development & broadcast. As well as being a foundation of the customer-facing workstreams, the Future Racing Product is the most time-critical area of work. This is to ensure that fundamental change can be incorporated into the fixture list from 2024. Hence why this area of the strategy has been prioritised. Alongside the customer-focussed elements there are also workstreams in relation to equine welfare, integrity, people and corporate social responsibility. More detail can be found here 3. Commercial Committee membership David Jones (Chair), BHA Senior Independent Director Julie Harrington, BHA Chief Executive Richard Wayman, BHA Chief Operating Officer David Armstrong, RCA Chief Executive Martin Cruddace, ARC Chief Executive Nevin Truesdale, Jockey Club Chief Executive Alex Eade, Secretary General, Large Independent Racecourse Group Jonjo Sanderson, as representative of the small independent racecourses Claire Sheppard, TBA Chief Executive Paul Johnson, NTF Chief Executive Charlie Liverton, ROA Chief Executive Ian McMahon, PJA Chief Executive George McGrath, NARS Chief Executive
I thought they might have said something about reorganising the Flat Pattern. It smells of a betting above all approach, whereas what gets racing people through the turnstiles is competitive racing.
The problem with the Pattern is that it’s a European thing and any changes to dates need to be agreed at that level. They have to be careful about removing races too as if they delete them from the programme they cannot add them back in at a later date. That’s why the changes made this year with a few Listed and G3 races taken out of the programme are officially “suspended races” so that if they feel they need them back they can just add them back in without needing approval. I agree the Pattern is bloated, particularly at the Listed level, but there is a fear that if we make changes here and other countries don’t it will devalue our bloodstock on a statistical level.
I am going to take a punt here and guess that by “head of the BHA” you mean the Chairman Joe Saumarez Smith. He was the CEO of Sports Gaming, which is a London-based consultancy that helps bookies with online marketing and website development. So in that respect he is not a bookmaker per se but from the industry. The CEO of the BHA, Julie Harrington, holds a similar role with British Cycling but I do not think she has any history in the bookmaking industry as (pardon the sexism here) I think I would remember a woman having a prominent role in bookmaking e.g. Denise Coates, CEO of Bet365. Looking at the list of members of the Committee, the former was not involved perhaps because it was not considered his area of expertise or influence.
I see that PN has already addressed the issue of changes to the pattern being done at the European level, so I won’t repeat but our historical inability to reform the pattern here is why we have ended up with a Champions’ Day in October while the Irish have a two day meeting in September built around the Irish Champion Stakes, when the going is less likely to be very soft. We could have built one in September around the QEII and left the Champion Stakes at HQ in its original slot with the Cesarewitch and Dewhurst. We went for October because the pattern committee would not have allowed two comparable ten furlong Group 1s in the same month. We should have looked to upgrade the September Stakes (twelve furlongs) and moved it to Ascot. I was no fan of the measures that have been brought in over the last twenty years looking at them solely through the prism of horseracing as a sport. More revenue driving measures – i.e. increasing bookmaker turnover – do at first glance appear to be one of the big factors in this package, so are they not heading to a situation like they have in France where the courses are virtually deserted but subsidised more by the betting levy?
With my albatross of being interested in breeding I always look through the coming week's fixtures for 2yo maidens. This banding system seems to discriminate against well-bred horses. As I understand it the yearling sales price defines which band a horse is in, and if the horse was not sold then the median price obtained by its sire's offspring. I think pN said somewhere that 70,000guineas is the limit for those horses in Band A, with progressively lower prices for Bands B, C and D. Basically if you have a Frankel or a Dubawi you are barred from running in these banded races and it won't be only those sires. To me this is totally wrong as it positively discriminates for cheaper horses. If you look at last week's racing, 2nd to the 8th, you'll struggle to find races for Band A horses, let alone open races. This is artificially skewing of races ends up skewing the careers of young racehorses. If I was a top trainer with a non-banded horse who has come to hand early, I'd be doing my pieces looking for an appropriate race for my charge. This is awarding mediocrity and giving the public poor fare to watch. The public would much rather go to the races and see a good horse beat a lot of others well than see a lot of nags run. Then strangely next Friday the Sun comes out. There are several unbanded races at Newbury and Newmarket so that trainers can get their good horses out. Why can't they even it out? I suppose my interest in racing grew when a young Henry Cecil would send a beautifully bred horse down the road to Yarmouth for their first race. I think a return to that would be good for second tier tracks. I can see that some banding might be considered but not at tracks like Newbury, York, Sandown etc.. These are the nurseries of excellence.
I haven’t got the figures to hand now, but the point of the Restricted Maiden/Novice races is to ensure opportunities for the “middle/lower” tier of horse. The theory is that the horses who do not fall within the bandings have plenty of opportunities in open company and by supporting the middle of the market they encourage more owners to buy the cheaper horses. The main reasoning behind creating the bands was that horses who had not been through a sale ring were unable to run in auction races as they had not achieved a sale price (though they could still run in median auction races). The creation of banding’s was so that all horses would get a category either dictated by their sale price or their sire’s median. The main loophole is if a trainer gets a “cheap” horse by a good sire at the sales, or the opposite situation of a very good homebred by a cheap stallion, that would have made big £ at the sales but gets in off a cheap median.
Just make all races simpler. Novice races unbanded then nurseries and stakes races. Ignore breeding for race categories. Simple.
