Gemma Tutty, trainer and former jockey
For me, what really captures the imagination is the backstory behind the horses, jockeys, owners and trainers involved. Every horse has a story and often those behind some of the less well-known ones and their connections are a lot more interesting than the ones we read about most of the time from the big stables. Just occasionally we see them in the mainstream media, but I think we are missing opportunities to use them to promote our sport and therefore entice a new audience.
We need to show how inclusive racing can be and that it’s not simply a ‘rich boys’ club’ as many would believe. Instead of covering fashion at the big meetings, we could be learning about the actual participants.
Look what Adam Nicol has achieved with Wise Eagle, a horse picked up for just 7,000 guineas and trained on the beach! He’s won 11 races since, been placed in Group 3s, and earned a trip to the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot last year. Look how well received the ITV programme on Showtime Mahomes was, with all of the interest not just in the horse himself but also how he changed the lives of the Darlington lads who bought him for not very much.
One of my owners bought their horse with inheritance money left by a late uncle, and the horse is named after him. There’s a story there too.
Perhaps we could document a group of foals or yearlings and follow them through every stage, even to beyond their racing days. These are the kind of stories that capture the imagination of the wider public. Whether it’s by documentaries, segments on ITV and the racing channels or TikTok – which I’ve tried myself in a very small way – and other social media, we should be getting them out there.
Ged Shields, racehorse owner with a background in marketing
The assumption behind the question is that racing needs to attract a younger fan base. I go racing in the north about 50 times a year, at York and elsewhere, especially at the much- criticised music nights, and there’s usually a sizeable proportion of the crowd that are under 40. So that’s the group I’d research. How many were even engaged by the racing? It’s an important question. If you can’t get people interested in racing when it’s taking place right in front of them, there’s no chance of engendering a deeper interest. I’ve been to scores of weddings, but it’s never encouraged me to go to church. You get the idea.
Do we know how many music night attendees subsequently attend a race meeting without music? If so, what motivated them to attend? If not, what put them off? How could the racegoing experience be improved? Was the ‘big’ screen actually big enough? Could they hear the public address system? Did they enjoy watching the horses race? Did they find the sport’s terminology off-putting? And so on.
The answers to these questions and more would tell me how to promote the sport to this demographic. Then I’d measure the response. Do more of what worked, do less of what didn’t work. Then move on quickly. Keep talking to the demographic. Keep trying things. Keep measuring. What I wouldn’t do is wait two years to find out that Premier racedays were – inevitably – not working.
Tim Gredley, owner and breeder
I think racing has done a good job exploring different avenues, but I believe we’ve now spread ourselves too thinly by trying to please everyone, which is impossible. You can’t force non-horsey people to start loving racing, and we’ve moved too far away from the foundations of the sport, which is its tradition.
Maybe we are missing a trick and it’s racing’s traditions and its history that we should be promoting. The sport used to be big, and that’s because we were doing something right. It’s called ‘The Sport of Kings’ for a reason. It’s no coincidence that Ascot and Cheltenham and big events like that get stronger and stronger, while elsewhere a lot of courses are struggling. The focus should be back on what we are good at – the best racing in the world, with the biggest match-ups, in the most famous races.
We should also better promote racing’s characters, both equine and human. When I was growing up there were so many characters within the sport, and they were celebrated. Nowadays, if anyone steps out of line in the slightest, they are soon slapped down, as everything has to be whiter than white. But a key part of our heritage is the colourful characters of the past.
Mouse Hamilton-Fairley, racehorse owner, former trainer and ROA Board member
Racing needs to be more inclusive and accepting of other sports – on days when there are big sporting occasions happening elsewhere at home or abroad, it is still not always possible to be able to watch them from a racecourse on a raceday. This is obviously a media rights issue but one that needs addressing. Alternatively, we need to make the racing experience more enjoyable even on non-premier routine midweek days. I was recently at a racecourse outside Mons in Belgium on a Tuesday night and there was free admission, a €50 three-course meal – of very good quality – plus a drink included and a terrific atmosphere in the facility.
Perhaps we should think about moving away from the current drinking culture associated with racing and try to attract the Gen Z population who don’t drink. In addition, racecourses might also embrace esports as an alternative to the concerts after racing – most owners are put off by the music nights because they tend to involve traffic queues and large heavy-drinking crowds who are not so interested in the horses or the racing. Esports is very much a growing hobby and could attract new people on to the courses.
Con Marnane, owner, breeder and sales consignor
Breeders, sales companies and so on should get together and see to it that auction maiden and median auction maidens are worth at least fifty grand. There would be more room for partnerships and syndicates, there would be more people coming in to buy yearlings, trade would be a lot stronger, and there would be a lot more excitement. If each horse had 20 people involved, you could nearly guarantee that 15 of them would come to the races, 15 of their friends would come along too, and maybe 15 friends of friends. It’s races for horses costing 50 grand or so that need looking after. The big owners aren’t in it for the prize- money.
They should get the sport’s main administrators and fly them business class to Australia to see how to run racing. I was there recently and I was blown away. Everyone loves their racing there and it’s almost a national sport. Prize-money is huge, everyone is getting a good living out of it, and the syndicates there are huge, so a vast number of people have small shares in racehorses – if they win even a small race they get well rewarded.
The racing industry is a massive employer, but the new government is not known for its love of the sport. We must get the government on side as the sport has to be looked after and needs help.
