Major UK betting operators are increasingly turning their backs on horseracing because it has become “a hassle”, leading many punters to turn to the black market, according to UK Tote Group chief revenue officer Paddy Desmond.
Speaking at DealMeOut’s Illegal Gambling Prevention Summit in Manchester on Tuesday, 24 March, Desmond warned that stringent affordability check measures introduced by operators to comply with regulatory demands have damaged the UK racing offering.
“Customers don’t want to send documents and that takes out the higher-stakes players in the ecosystem,” he said. “Basically, the biggest racing fans are the ones who’ve been kicked out of the ecosystem.
“Punters will just vote with their feet. If they’re not getting a good experience, they’ll just stop betting and they’ll find those opportunities elsewhere.
“I can see the black market becoming increasingly more competitive and that’s because they can afford to do so. Start clamping down on them [black market sites] and stop letting it be a career choice.”
Desmond , who spent 13 years in senior racing roles at Paddy Power, said the requirement for UK operators to implement affordability checks had created a culture of fear in the industry.
“We’re massively worried. Very simply, it’s reversing the changes being made,” he said. “I think more judgement needs to be given to operators and less threat of fines and thresholds. Operators are terrified because of the fear of fines. That’s a major thing, but easy to reverse.
“As well as bringing the punters back in, it’s also about bringing the big operators back in.
“A lot of the operators’ focus is now on the US, and quite frankly, they don’t care about the UK and Ireland – they see horseracing as a hassle. Even if in terms of fighting the fight, they don’t want to do it if it jeopardises getting their licence elsewhere.”
Earlier this month, bet365 became the latest operator to pull its sponsorships of horseracing events due to impending tax increases in the UK market.
Research published by the Betting and Gaming Council claimed that up to £60m was staked with illegal operators during the Cheltenham Festival, which took place earlier this month.
Horseracing was given a reprieve in the Autumn Budget announcement of tax rises in the UK gambling market.
The sport’s rate is set to remain at 15%, while remote gaming duty will increase from 21% to 40% from April onwards, with general betting duty increasing to 25% from April 2027.
The Treasury was reportedly warned in advance that major tax increases in the UK gambling market would lead to increased exposure for customers to the black market and significant job losses.
The post Major operators “don’t care” about horseracing, claims UK Tote Group exec first appeared on EGR Intel.
Chief revenue officer Paddy Desmond suggests UK brands are focusing their attention on the US, with punters being pushed towards the black market amid affordability checks pressure
The post Major operators “don’t care” about horseracing, claims UK Tote Group exec first appeared on EGR Intel.