racing industry

Wagering on U.S. races during the month of January experienced just over a six percent downswing from a year ago, but the number of race days was roughly 12 percent lower, according to information released by Equibase on Thursday. Total wagering of $753,930,913 on races during the month represented a 6.09% decrease over the same period from 2025, while available purses of over $73-million were lower by almost 13%. The figure of over $68.5-million for paid purses in January was also down by 13.69%. As for the total number of...

Tom Rooney, the president and chief executive officer of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA), said Wednesday that the focus of his organization's current lobbying efforts in Congress is getting a recently enacted tax law reversed so horse race bettors can go back to deducting 100% of their gambling losses instead of the 90% that was imposed by passage of the sweeping One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) signed into law July 4. The NTRA has estimated that the financial hit to the racing industry because of this tax change...

The new Home Energy Grant, funded by the John Pearce Foundation, was launched by Racing Welfare on Wednesday. The initiative offers crucial financial assistance to both current and retired individuals within the sector, helping them cope with the rising costs of home energy. The Home Energy Grant offers £300 to eligible households, specifically those living on or below the Minimum Income Standards, as defined by The Joseph Rowntree Foundation. This support is aimed at individuals and families who are most vulnerable, ensuring they can meet the essential energy needs of...

Plans for easing the remaining COVID-19 raceday restrictions were announced by British racing on Thursday. The weighing room resting requirements would lift by the end of February as a result. The provisional timetable agreed by the industry's COVID-19 Group is as follows: From Monday, 28 Feb., Weighing Room attendees will no longer be expected to show evidence of a negative lateral flow test prior to entry. From Monday, 14 Mar., racecourses will no longer be required to configure the Weighing Room complex for the purposes of COVID-19 infection control. These...

Everyone working in or involved with the racing and breeding industry in Great Britain is encouraged to take part in an online questionnaire that will map industry activity with the aim of future-proofing racing, its organisations, and the livelihoods of its people, against immediate and long-term environmental challenges. The survey, which runs until Monday, Feb. 14, may be found here. Part of a joint initiative between the British Horseracing Authority (BHA), The Racing Foundation, The Horsemen's Group and the Racecourse Association (RCA), the survey is delivered in partnership with sustainability...

Wellbeing across the Horseracing Industry, a comprehensive survey to help inform a strategy dedicated to the welfare of the British Racing workforce, was launched on Tuesday. The survey, which runs through May 16, is open to everyone working across the Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry. Every individual who completes the survey, will receive a personalised well-being report to help improve how they feel, live and work. A Wellbeing Committee was also created, comprising a significant range of expertise across its membership, as well as a dedication towards improving further the...

In Global Views, Godolphin Flying Start trainees provide insight into practices experienced and observations taken on their worldwide travels. First-year trainee Angus Robertson looks at how Special Conditions Races are changing the Thoroughbred racing landscape for the better. There are two certainties in horse racing. First--people don't do it for the money. Long hours, hard work and sometimes little reward if things go wrong (which they often can) are enough to put off anyone seeking pure financial gain. People in the Thoroughbred industry do it for a love of the...

The education and training survey results, which 699 people participated in from Nov. 4-Dec. 16, 2019, were announced by Horse Racing Ireland on Tuesday. The main challenges of all survey participants-147 employers, 482 employees and 47 students-were financial and getting time off for additional training. Other issues for employees are work hours and low income, while for employers, set-up costs and staff shortages were problems. The 2020 industry education and training strategy developed by HRI to combat these changes are as follows: Attract people to join the racing and breeding...

Return to School grants to racing industry families will be provided by Racing Welfare. Applications are being accepted from July 28, with funding from the John Pearce Foundation and The Racing Foundation. At £100 per child, up to four children per family may receive a grant, with the grants available to anyone currently working in the Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry who has dependent school age children (4-18 years) and meets eligibility criteria. For more information on eligibility and the grants, please go to www.racingwelfare.co.uk.

Churchill Downs has released the stakes schedule for its September meet, which will include the renamed $175,000 Lukas Classic--named in honor of Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas. The 1 1/8-mile race for 3-year-olds and up, designed to be a prep for the GI Breeders' Cup Classic, was introduced in 2013 and was previously named the Homecoming Classic. "Along with the enormity of the numbers of his total victories, the stakes races he has won and earnings by his stable's horses throughout his Hall of Fame career, D. Wayne...