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The 2027 Fixture list has been announced with a whole whopping 18 less fixtures than in 2026, I mean what part of ‘there is too much racing for too few horses’ do they not understand……..its not like it is rocket science.
I notice that Newcastle held a nine-race card both yesterday and today.
I wonder if one way around a reduction in the number of meetings (if it ever happens) will be to make the meetings longer? 🤔
It seems that it is going to take a draconian act (not that anyone in charge has the cojones to do it) that the racecourse are just going to have to swallow for the good of the sport long term.
The longer these little reductions (that benefit nobody) carry on being implemented the harder/bigger the financial losses potentially will be when drastic reductions are forced upon the sport further down the line when the situation is more dire.
At least at the moment the sport have some level of control and we know that with less races, the likely hood is that the remaining races will have much increased field sizes, which would make them more attractive for punters (over single digit races) to bet on.
I just wish the sport would come down more often on the proactive side of matters rather than the reactive side.
There are too many groups with conflicting views and interests on the BHA board.
ARC have no interest in reducing their fixtures and would vote down any proposal that would enable this. The RCA have to represent their members views at the BHA.
This is one of the reasons why Ascot and the Jockey Club racecourses have left the RCA as they can see the future of the sport is being damaged and their voice is not being effectively represented.
Until the governance structure of the BHA changes and it becomes independent, with the ability to make changes for the good of the sport, without agreement from all members, then we’re doomed.
....and you've got to look a long way back for anything else.
“I wonder if one way around a reduction in the number of meetings (if it ever happens) will be to make the meetings longer? 🤔”
That’s exactly what has happened in this case. 18 less meetings but more races to compensate. There are hundreds too many fixtures. It’s pathetic.
Is racing more poorly run in any other country? Racing should be in charge of the fixtures not the courses, it should be challenged in the courts if necessary.
There’s no hope though with an authority that openly allows bookmakers to pay trainers and jockeys for information.The 2003–2004 Office of Fair Trading (OFT) ruling determined that the British Horseracing Board’s (BHB) central control of the horse racing fixture list infringed upon the Competition Act 1998, functioning as an illegal monopoly.
This is where it all went wrong, which forced the then BHB to reach agreement with the OFT in 2004 over how they would manage the fixture list going forward. Excerpt below:
All fixtures will be divided into ‘Racecourse Fixtures’ (1203) and ‘BHB Fixtures’ (297). Racecourse Fixtures will comprise all 2004 fixtures except Regional Racing Fixtures and BHB leasehold fixtures which were granted on an agreed leasehold basis. Racecourse Fixtures will effectively be Class A fixtures.
BHB Fixtures will comprise the rest of the fixture list, over half of which fixtures will be created for the 2006 Fixture List for the first time, and will effectively be Class B fixtures. The large majority of BHB Fixtures will be Flat fixtures.
Racecourses will bid for BHB Fixtures competitively against each other for a 3-year lease with the course willing to bid the most prize money contribution winning the bid.
New racecourses will be defined as those courses that have never operated any fixtures. They will receive preferential treatment in the acquisition of up to 16 BHB Fixtures since they will only be able to acquire Racecourse Fixtures over a period of time.
A racecourse will, in future, be able to more easily improve its fixture list by:
• moving 10% of its Racecourse Fixtures every three years to other Racecourse Fixture slots;
• moving a percentage of its BHB National Fixtures every three years into Racecourse Fixtures;
• bidding for BHB Fixtures;
• swapping, trading or purchasing fixtures.The new fixture allocation process ends ‘In Perpetuity Protection’ of a fixture and replaces it with ‘Three Year Tenure’.
This ruling will probably have to be challenged in the courts and overturned before we get anywhere.
....and you've got to look a long way back for anything else.
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