Does UK Racing Understand Its Customers? Spoiler Alert: Not Really

UK horseracing likes to talk about attracting a younger, more diverse audience—an admirable goal that would seem forward-thinking if the sport had any real idea what its current customers want. Owners leave without so much as a goodbye, punters are treated like liabilities, and racegoers are fleeced for a distinctly average day out. It’s like a business that’s trying to design the next iPhone without understanding how a telephone works.

One friend of mine, an owner spending £30,000 a year on their horse, left the sport recently and wasn’t even asked why by the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). No survey, no phone call, not even a quick “We’re sorry to see you go!” It’s as if racing assumes owners will keep showing up regardless of how badly they’re treated—a strategy that would make even Ryanair blush.

Owners: Racing’s Walking ATMs

Owners are the financial backbone of the sport, yet they’re often treated like an afterthought—unless, of course, they’re sheikhs or billionaires with a string of Group 1 winners. For the everyday owner who funds the grassroots game, it’s a different story entirely.

• The Costs: It can cost upwards of £25,000 to £30,000+ a year to keep a single horse in training. Add in transport, entry fees, and vet bills, and you’ve got yourself a small fortune disappearing faster than a novice hurdler at the first fence.

• The Rewards: Prize money rarely covers even a fraction of these costs. Winning a midweek handicap might net you a couple of grand (nett after deductions), but that’s hardly worth celebrating when your trainer’s bill is still staring you in the face.

Then there’s the experience. Owners at smaller tracks are often left standing by the railings with no seat, no perks, and no sense that their investment is valued. Imagine spending £30,000 on a car and being told you couldn’t sit inside it.

The Reality Check:
Good businesses reward their top customers. Racing, however, seems to treat owners as if they’re lucky to be involved. And when they inevitably leave? The industry doesn’t even bother to find out why.

Punters: Racing’s Forgotten Majority

If owners are the walking wallets, punters are the invisible army funding the sport through their bets. Yet, instead of nurturing this group, the industry seems intent on driving them away.

• The Bookmaker Barrier: Punters face stake restrictions, affordability checks, and bookmaker algorithms that block profitable bettors. It’s like showing up to a restaurant, ordering a meal, and being told you’ve eaten too much to come back next week.

• No Advocacy: The BHA and racing leadership remain suspiciously quiet on bookmaker practices, focusing instead on safer gambling platitudes. Meanwhile, punters are left wondering why the very sport they support seems determined to make betting a joyless slog.

The Missed Opportunity:
Punters are racing’s largest customer base. Ignoring them isn’t just bad business—it’s suicidal.

Racegoers: The Day-Trippers Nobody Listens To

Racegoers face their own unique set of challenges. For casual fans looking to enjoy a day at the track, racing doesn’t exactly roll out the red carpet.

• The Costs: Ticket prices have crept up, food and drink are extortionate, and parking often feels like a side hustle for the local council.

• The Experience: While flagship events like Cheltenham offer a festival atmosphere, many smaller tracks offer little more than lukewarm chips and a dodgy PA system.

Tracks talk endlessly about creating a “festival vibe,” yet their efforts often amount to hiring a cover band for the post-race entertainment. The industry is so focused on gimmicks like "Ladies' Day" that it forgets to provide a genuinely great experience for everyone.

The Result:
Casual racegoers don’t become repeat customers. Why would they, when the day often costs a fortune and leaves them feeling underwhelmed?

Racing Leadership: Out of Touch and Out of Ideas

The BHA’s approach to customer engagement seems to amount to the occasional survey, framed in such a way that it validates whatever the leadership already thinks. Questions like “What’s your favourite thing about race day?” avoid tackling the harder truths, such as why owners, punters, and fans feel undervalued.

Take my friend who left the sport as an owner. The BHA didn’t call, email, or even send a sad-face emoji. How can racing expect to attract new owners when it doesn’t even understand why existing ones are leaving? It’s like running a shop where customers walk out without buying anything, and the manager shrugs and says, “Well, they probably didn’t like the lighting.”

What Needs to Change?

Racing is in desperate need of a reality check. Instead of chasing mythical younger audiences, it needs to fix its relationship with the people already keeping the sport alive.

1. Listen to Owners: Conduct proper exit interviews to understand why owners leave. Use the data to improve prize money, facilities, and the overall ownership experience.

2. Advocate for Punters: Racing leadership must stand up to bookmakers, ensuring fair practices and transparency for the people funding the levy.

3. Reinvest in Racegoers: Make attending the races affordable, engaging, and memorable. Invest in better facilities, improve customer service, and stop relying on tired gimmicks.

4. Get Serious About Surveys: Stop asking self-serving questions and start listening to honest feedback from all stakeholders.

   Conclusion: Fixing the Disconnect and Securing Racing’s Future

   UK racing doesn’t just need a new marketing strategy—it needs a new mindset. Owners, punters, and fans aren’t endless resources to be tapped and ignored. They’re customers with expectations, frustrations, and choices about where to spend their money. Until racing leadership wakes up to this fact, the sport risks spiraling into irrelevance.

   Key Insights for Change

   1. Owners Aren’t Unlimited
      Racing needs to realize that every departing owner is more than a lost £30,000—a missed chance to build loyalty and learn. Each one who leaves isn’t just cutting ties with their trainer and horse but with an entire sport. How can racing hope to attract new owners when existing ones feel undervalued?

   • Insight: Offer real incentives for smaller owners, such as syndicate support, improved facilities, and tiered loyalty programs. Racing must create a sense of community rather than elitism.

   2. Punters Keep the Lights On
      Punters don’t just bet—they fund the levy, underpin sponsorship, and provide the enthusiasm that keeps the sport alive. Treating them as nuisances to be managed rather than customers to be engaged is short-sighted.

   • Insight: Racing leadership must actively advocate for punters, demanding transparency and fairness from bookmakers. Introducing initiatives like loyalty schemes for repeat bettors or "punter appreciation days" could help rebuild trust.

   3. The Casual Racegoer Needs to Feel Valued
      Most racegoers don’t want VIP treatment—they just want a good day out. That means decent food, reasonable prices, and a welcoming atmosphere. Tracks like Cheltenham have improved the balance, but smaller courses often fall short, leaving casual attendees unimpressed, Kelso an exception.

   • Insight: Each track needs to think about its unique selling point. Is it family-friendly fun, historic charm, or unbeatable access to the action? Racecourses that play to their strengths will create lasting memories, turning one-off visits into lifelong habits.

   4. Focus on Honest Data, Not Convenient Surveys
      Racing’s leadership loves a survey, but they rarely ask the hard questions: Why are owners leaving? What frustrates punters the most? What makes racegoers hesitant to return? Without honest feedback, the sport is flying blind, clinging to outdated assumptions about its audience.

   • Insight: Invest in genuine customer research. For every owner who leaves, a departing punter, or a racegoer who doesn’t come back, there’s valuable insight to be gained. A robust, transparent feedback loop will help racing adapt to modern expectations.

   The Bigger Picture: A Sport Worth Fighting For

   Horseracing has the potential to thrive. It combines spectacle, heritage, and community in a way few other sports can rival. But to secure its future, the industry needs to make bold changes:

   • Owners must feel like valued investors, not walking chequebooks.

   • Punters need to be respected as the financial bedrock of the sport, not treated with suspicion.

   • Casual fans must be welcomed with accessible, memorable experiences that keep them coming back.

   The racing industry must stop paying lip service to its issues and start delivering real solutions. Because if it doesn’t, racing won’t be remembered as a sport that evolved to meet modern challenges—it’ll be mourned as one that stubbornly clung to old habits while its audience walked away.

   The BHA, Levy Board,Jockey Club and racecourses have a choice: will they continue to sit in the grandstand, watching the future gallop past, or will they finally get in the race? The finishing line is approaching faster than they think.