Racing leaders face huge decisions - but could any amount of money justify relinquishing control of the crown jewels?
The premierisation story has been one of evolution not revolution. What might conceivably follow would be revolution with knobs on.
As revealed by the Racing Post on Saturday, the sport's commercial committee has agreed plans to carry out two important pieces of work, one of which will seek to expand on the findings of a Thoroughbred Group-commissioned PwC report that claimed British racing could bank a huge sum of money if commercial rights to around 40 of the sport's top Flat fixtures were pooled into a single entity and sold to an external party.
Industry leaders are now committed to appointing an organisation that will examine the value of the sport's top Flat product and attempt to identify parties who might be prepared to pay many tens of millions of pounds in return for some sort of controlling interest in Britain's marquee events.
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on inLee Mottershead
Last updated
- No-one has ever emerged from the womb wearing a trilby - racing's future survival hangs on pursuing a young audience
- Restrictions and the black market: surely the time has come for bookmakers to confront the link between them
- Plummeting betting turnover leaves British racing in a precarious state - whatever the sales numbers might suggest
- British racing's leaders past and present have spoken with one voice - there must be change
- A prime minister who likes racing and a bet can be only a good thing - just like Aidan O'Brien's transparency
- No-one has ever emerged from the womb wearing a trilby - racing's future survival hangs on pursuing a young audience
- Restrictions and the black market: surely the time has come for bookmakers to confront the link between them
- Plummeting betting turnover leaves British racing in a precarious state - whatever the sales numbers might suggest
- British racing's leaders past and present have spoken with one voice - there must be change
- A prime minister who likes racing and a bet can be only a good thing - just like Aidan O'Brien's transparency