TOTE CHAIRMAN’S THOUGHTS - A LOT TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN 2022

Thursday 13th January 2022

The New Year is well underway and, at the Tote, we have much to look forward to in the coming months.

Whilst the impact of Covid will continue to be felt in all our lives, there is an increasing sense that, at least in some regions, it may have a less material long-term effect as the world settles into a “new normal”.

Here in Hong Kong, as well as in the UK and other leading racing nations, the sport we all love so much has proved remarkably resilient. Its ongoing attraction and operational resilience is testament to all involved across the industry who have met the associated challenges and who continue to play their part through difficult times.

Earlier this month Alex Frost, the Tote’s Chief Executive, was asked by the Racing Post to provide some expectations for the Tote and pool betting in 2022. He wisely said that black swans might be more useful than crystal balls, but made clear that there are some things we can be certain about and which should inspire optimism. I would like to reflect on a couple of these.

First, the Tote’s pool – which now combines the UK and Irish pools – will continue to grow in 2022. The pool is integrated with over 20 countries around the world. In 2022 we will continue to work hard to make it easier for more international jurisdictions to bet on British and Irish racing, seeking to continue the momentum achieved in 2021 when the pool grew by 40%. Ensuring that our racing can be watched and bet on around the world - and that British and Irish racing directly benefits from this - is at the heart of everything we do at the Tote.

Second, the UK has a wonderful long weekend to look forward to in June with the Platinum Jubilee. The 243rd running of the Derby at Epsom will be an exciting way to mark this momentous occasion. We’re delighted that this globally recognised race will once again be a World Pool event and one of the most significant opportunities to promote our sport in decades. 2021 was the first year the world’s most famous flat race was part of World Pool and the whole day generated a pool of over £25.5 million ($34.5m). We will continue working with our partners to help exceed last year’s pool in 2022, and thus increase the returns to the sport.

We hope for a packed racecourse at this year’s event which would help create wonderful images to showcase British racing to the world. We have no doubt that ITV Racing will do another outstanding job in broadcasting the event to a bumper UK audience, while it is also shared around the world to a large global audience.

It may still be rather challenging to travel the globe, but the best racing in the world can bring us all together. This year we’ll ensure that the Tote team continues to do all it can to highlight the sport on the global stage and to further strengthen collaboration with our racecourse and media rights partners in order to provide an even more fun, competitive and safer place to bet for everyone.

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