About the future of horse racing in Europe

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   Hi

I 'm writing you from Greece.
I 'm a fan of horse racing and perhaps you can help me.
What I 'm trying to find out is how the horse racing industry is doing economically across Europe.

I hope that some of you can answer the questions I 'm going to ask.

In Europe the three countries with the longest horse racing tradition and multitude of events are the UK, France and Ireland.
So I believe that in those three countries the racing industry is doing well, or relatively well.
I am interested more in the other countries such as Spain, Benelux, Germany, Eastern Europe and the Balkan countries.

In Greece since football betting with fixed odds was introduced in the 90s, horse racing has been more or less sliding downwards over the years.
The popularity of football betting is immense and of course people do not have the money and the time to follow both football and racing.

So I wonder if this is the case in your country too.
Can this -or does this- lead to the end of horse racing ?
Are race courses closing down (like ours is danger of) or have your racing authorities succeeded in keeping things going and how ?

I would appreciate your contributions which will help us in understanding matters relating to horse racing.

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cosmicsports Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Foal Joined: 21 Feb 2019 Location: Greece Status: Offline Points: 7	Post Options Post Reply Quote cosmicsports Report Post Thanks(1) Quote Reply Topic: About the future of horse racing in Europe Posted: 21 Feb 2019 at 8:58pm
	Hi I 'm writing you from Greece. I 'm a fan of horse racing and perhaps you can help me. What I 'm trying to find out is how the horse racing industry is doing economically across Europe. I hope that some of you can answer the questions I 'm going to ask. In Europe the three countries with the longest horse racing tradition and multitude of events are the UK, France and Ireland. So I believe that in those three countries the racing industry is doing well, or relatively well. I am interested more in the other countries such as Spain, Benelux, Germany, Eastern Europe and the Balkan countries. In Greece since football betting with fixed odds was introduced in the 90s, horse racing has been more or less sliding downwards over the years. The popularity of football betting is immense and of course people do not have the money and the time to follow both football and racing. So I wonder if this is the case in your country too. Can this -or does this- lead to the end of horse racing ? Are race courses closing down (like ours is danger of) or have your racing authorities succeeded in keeping things going and how ? I would appreciate your contributions which will help us in understanding matters relating to horse racing.

Tom Rolfe Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Champion Joined: 07 Apr 2024 Status: Offline Points: 1881	Post Options Post Reply Quote Tom Rolfe Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 Oct 2025 at 9:10pm
	from racing post website- British racing is on an unsustainable course. Foal crops are falling, crowds are thinning, betting is weakening, and the 'Racing Tax' would only deepen the strain. Strength at the top end cannot mask the weaknesses across the rest of the sport. As a former participant and now an investment analyst observing from the outside, I can see the same truth from both perspectives: the sport needs change. What does 'success' look like for British racing? Is it growth in betting turnover, higher prize-money, fuller grandstands or stronger television audiences? Ask different stakeholders and the answers is likely to vary. In a healthy system, a competitive product lifts betting volumes, fills the stands and strengthens media-rights income. That income helps fund higher prize-money, rewarding owners who reinvest and creating the virtuous circle on which racing depends. The reality is very different. The sport has been moving in the opposite direction. Attendances at Flat meetings have fallen by almost a million since 2015, betting turnover dropped 17 per cent in just two years between 2022 and 2024, and the foal crop is projected to decline 25 per cent by 2026. Instead of reinforcing the virtuous circle, these pressures spin it in reverse: fewer horses, smaller fields, weaker betting and less money flowing back into the sport. The Racing Tax would compound pressures the model is already unable to withstand.

Colonial18 Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Foal Joined: 10 Jun 2019 Location: Australia Status: Offline Points: 2	Post Options Post Reply Quote Colonial18 Report Post Thanks(0) Quote Reply Posted: 28 Oct 2025 at 9:54pm
	With the Release of the DNA Haplotype Data for each of the main 24 Breeds being Publicly available over the last 10 years, you can certainly see the Increase in success by those Breeders who are utilising this to understand the proper methods for Horse Breeding, and the Best climactic settings and racing Tactics, for example the L3a1b who encompass most of Bruce Lowe Families 8 and 16 and there Free Striding ability, (eg Need to Lead, Sit out Side Leader, Sit Three wide, or a Gap last). This then is providing disproportionate success for a small number of Owners and Breeders, rather than spreading the wealth across more participants. Obviously with the Last Champions day as a Prime Example 4 of the 7 Winners Owned by Sheikhs or the Aga Khan, See "Horses of the Sahara" or "My Life Among the Black Tents" for the Predominant Arabic Horse breeding Methodologies. then Overlay with the DNA data, And Don't forget old Bruce Lowe with his Stallion and Runners Breeds. And Presto you can see why Nearctic Sired Northern Dance.