Press Release

British racing set for 17 World Pool days in 2021

Wednesday 12th May 2021

British racing will participate in 17 World Pool days in 2021.

The UK Tote Group, leading British racecourses and their media rights partners, principally Racecourse Media Group (RMG), have all worked closely with the Hong Kong Jockey Club which has confirmed the following World Pool events on British racedays for 2021:

• QIPCO 2000 Guineas Day – Newmarket Rowley Mile Racecourse, Saturday 1st May*

• Cazoo Derby Day – Epsom Downs Racecourse, Saturday 5th June*

• Five days of Royal Ascot – Ascot Racecourse, Tuesday 15th to Saturday 19th June

• Coral-Eclipse Day – Sandown Park Racecourse, Saturday 3rd July*

• QIPCO King George Diamond Day – Ascot Racecourse, Saturday 24th July*

• The first three days of the Qatar Goodwood Festival - Goodwood Racecourse, Tuesday 27th July to Thursday 29th July*

• Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup Day – Ascot Racecourse, Saturday 7th August*

• The first three days of the Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival – York Racecourse, Wednesday 18th to Friday 20th August*

• QIPCO British Champions Day – Ascot Racecourse, Saturday 16th October

Fixtures marked with * are new World Pool days for 2021.

The increased number of simulcast meetings (and by extension World Pool meetings) was approved by the Hong Kong Government in February and sees the number of days increase by 14 days, to a total of 37 days this year.

So far, in addition to the 17 World Pool events on British racedays, a further five new World Pool days have been confirmed, with two racedays from South Africa and three from France.

World Pool ensures there are larger and deeper pools, smoothing pricing and driving an increase in value for customers, as racing fans from around the world bet into a single pool. World Pool at Royal Ascot in 2019 saw pools grow by over 400% to £92.2 million, and last year there was a further 50% increase to £137 million. The increased liquidity from a global customer base helped create greater value for Tote customers with the pool price beating the Starting Price (SP) by 32% in 2019 and 9% in 2020.

In 2021, Tote customers will continue to benefit from the better odds generated by increased liquidity due to World Pool. In addition, Tote customers can be assured of always receiving the best odds available with Tote Guarantee and Tote+ (Tote Plus) in place for every UK and Irish race. Tote+ provides customers of tote.co.uk with a 10% dividend enhancement, while Tote Guarantee ensures the Tote will always match the industry Starting Price (SP) on all Win bets, or exceed it if the pool price is bigger.

Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges, Chief Executive Officer of the Hong Kong Jockey Club, said: “This underscores another important achievement made by the Hong Kong Jockey Club and the Tote, as well as their partners across British racing in ensuring racing fans around the world can bet on some of the best days in the flat racing calendar via World Pool. The extra World Pool days across the summer will also strengthen our efforts in effectively addressing the illegal gambling issues in Hong Kong as it will help to prevent illegal and offshore bookmakers from luring Hong Kong residents to bet on overseas races during the off-season. We look forward to continuing to work with all in British racing to refine, develop and promote World Pool in the months and years ahead.”

John Williamson, Chairman of the UK Tote Group, said: “We are delighted to work with the Hong Kong Jockey Club and our partners in British and Irish racing to ensure the sport benefits from World Pool events. I would like to offer my sincere thanks to Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges and the Hong Kong Jockey Club team for their leadership and cooperation. Their pioneering approach to innovating the pool betting offering for racing fans around the world is truly outstanding. This provides us with a significant opportunity to showcase British and Irish racing to an international audience.”

The Duke of Richmond and Gordon, Owner of Goodwood Racecourse said: “Goodwood is delighted to be staging three of the new World Pool fixtures later this year, and it is a really important development for British Racing to be playing such a significant role in the growth of international cooperation around pool betting. The Qatar Goodwood Festival is the highlight of Goodwood’s year, and being recognised as staging races with a global significance is very important to us. I would like to thank Winfried and his team at the Hong Kong Jockey Club for their vision and hard work in helping bring racing jurisdictions across the world together and creating the World Pool which we are certain will go from strength to strength.”

Bridget Guerin, Chair of York Racecourse, said: “York Racecourse is delighted that all three of our midweek racedays of the Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival will be included as World Pool events. This includes our three Group 1 races including the Longines World’s Best Race, the £1m Juddmonte International.  We very much appreciate the support we have had from the Hong Kong Jockey Club and all parties working together to make this positive announcement. We look forward to staging some of the best racing in the world for race fans around the world to follow, engage with and enjoy.”

Guy Henderson, Chief Executive of Ascot Racecourse, said: “Having launched World Pool at Royal Ascot in 2019, we are delighted that our partnership with the Hong Kong Jockey Club has expanded further with the inclusion of QIPCO King George Diamond Day and the Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup. Both events have international significance and their inclusion in World Pool will add further to their profile.”

Nevin Truesdale, Chief Executive of The Jockey Club, said: “We’re delighted that the Coral-Eclipse will be added to The Jockey Club’s existing portfolio of World Pool events for 2021. As one of the UK’s premier Flat races and the first point in the season at which the Classic generation take on their older counterparts, I’m sure it will capture the imagination of racing fans globally. It is a race we value highly and we look forward to continuing to work with the UK Tote Group, Hong Kong Jockey Club, and RMG in this exciting venture for British racing.”

Nick Mills, Chief Commercial Officer of Racecourse Media Group, which represents the media interests of The Jockey Club, Goodwood and York racecourses, said: “Working with its racecourse shareholders and British Champions Series, RMG is delighted to have helped facilitate the staging of these showpiece fixtures as World Pool events. We have enjoyed a long and valued relationship with the Hong Kong Jockey Club, and we are very grateful to them for all their support.”

ENDS.

For further information, please contact:

Susannah Gill
Communications and Corporate Affairs Director
UK Tote Group
susannah.gill@uktotegroup.com
07751 870 929

Notes to Editors

About UK TOTE GROUP

UK Tote Group is the proud owner and steward of the Tote, the UK’s leading pool betting operator.

The Tote has been a core part of British horseracing since 1928 when it was established by Parliament under Winston Churchill as Chancellor of the Exchequer, to provide the public with a safe way to bet and vital funding for the sport.

UK Tote Group is committed to fulfilling Churchill’s founding mission through a revitalised Tote which provides better value and an improved experience to customers, as well as funding for British horseracing. 

The 90-year-old British company is backed by racehorse owners and breeders from around the world. It has an exclusive partnership with British racecourses to provide pool betting services to the six million people who attend race meetings in Great Britain every year, alongside an alliance with Tote Ireland.

The Tote employs 150 people who are based in the Tote’s main office in Wigan and a satellite office in London.

For more information about the UK Tote Group please visit www.uktotegroup.com and follow us @UKToteGroup and @ToteRacing.

About Hong Kong Jockey Club

Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a world-class racing club that acts continuously for the betterment of our society. The Club has a unique integrated business model, comprising racing and racecourse entertainment, a membership club, responsible sports wagering and lottery, and charities and community contribution. Through this model, the Club generates economic and social value for the community and supports the Government in combatting illegal gambling. In 2018/19, the Club made a record return to the Government of HK$23.3 billion in duty and profits tax and contributed HK$1.3 billion to the Lotteries Fund. Approved charity and community donations were HK$4.3 billion. The Club is Hong Kong’s largest single taxpayer and one of the city’s major employers. Its Charities Trust is also one of the world’s top ten charity donors. The Club is always “riding high together for a better future” with the people of Hong Kong. Please visit www.hkjc.com.

About Ascot Racecourse

Ascot Racecourse was founded in 1711 by Queen Anne, who identified the land as being ideal for horseracing when riding out from Windsor Castle. The first four day meeting at Ascot took place in 1768 and at some point in time, the race programme started being referred to as Royal Ascot.

The two tracks, Flat and Jumps, now provide racing all year round and Ascot hosts 26 days of racing each year, including the five days of Royal Ascot. It is Europe’s premier Flat racing meeting, featuring eight Group 1 races and 19 Group races in total. Typically, 300,000 racegoers attend across the five days while the event is broadcast in more than 200 territories with a reach of 650 million households.

As well as world-class racing, Ascot Racecourse is also used as a film and TV filming location and as a venue for conferences, banquets, exhibitions, product launches and weddings, with 300 non-racing events annually. The land on which Ascot Racecourse sits is leased from the Crown Estate, adjacent to Windsor Great Park, covering 179 acres. For more information please visit www.ascot.co.uk

About Sandown Park Racecourse

Sandown Park Racecourse is home to some of the finest Jump and Flat racing on the planet. Located in Esher, it is owned by The Jockey Club, one of the largest sports businesses operating in the UK today (2019 turnover: £216.5 million). The Jockey Club is at the heart of so many aspects of Britain’s second-biggest spectator sport. We run 15 of the UK’s leading racecourses – large and local, where we’re charged with looking after some of the nation’s biggest events, including the Randox Grand National Festival at Aintree, The Festival at Cheltenham, The Derby Festival at Epsom Downs and the QIPCO Guineas Festival in Newmarket. We welcome thousands of racehorses a year to our training centres in Newmarket, Lambourn and Epsom. We run The National Stud in Newmarket and our charity, Racing Welfare, makes help available to all of racing’s people. We are governed by Royal Charter to act for the long-term benefit of British Racing and our Patron is Her Majesty The Queen. For more information please visit www.thejockeyclub.co.uk.

About Goodwood Racecourse

Goodwood Racecourse celebrates 19 days of fabulous horseracing throughout the summer. Home to the Qatar Goodwood Festival, the five-day extravaganza attracts the very best equine athletes, and the meeting is one of the highlights of the British Flat Racing Season.

With its exceptional horseracing heritage, Goodwood is widely regarded as the most beautiful racecourse in the world, offering a picturesque backdrop and sporting amphitheatre like nowhere else. Additional fixtures across the summer feature May and June Racing, August Bank Holiday Weekend, and Season Finale. 

Tickets, dining, and hospitality can be booked by visiting Goodwood.com or calling 01243 755055. 

About York Racecourse

York Racecourse is one of the leading racecourses in the world and was voted “UK Racecourse of the Year 2019” by both the Racegoers Club and Racehorse Owners Association. First formed in 1731, this city centre racecourse two hours north of London, has a proud tradition of hosting some of the best racing in the European Calendar.  The Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival in mid-August is York’s flagship meeting which combines top quality racing action with fashion, atmosphere, fabulous hospitality and a Yorkshire welcome.   

About Racecourse Media Group (RMG)

RMG is the umbrella organisation for the 34 racecourses which hold an interest in Racing TV, Racing TV International (international betting broadcast service) and Racecourse Data Company (licensing and control of Pre-Race Data). Racecourse Retail Business is the vehicle which represents 37 racecourses' content in the LBO (licensed betting office) market. Pictures are shown in around 8,000 LBOs in Britain and Ireland.