Asian Racing Federation Calls for Unity in Sport

The head of the Asian Horse Racing Federation said divisions in the horse racing industry were hurting the sport, citing examples such as interstate disputes in Australia, disjointed efforts in the United Kingdom and opposition in the United States to the Horse Racing Integrity and Safety Authority.

Speaking at the opening business session of the 40th Asian Racing Conference in Sapporo, Japan, ARF chief Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said racing was at a “critical juncture” with challenges on many fronts.

“We have to think globally and specifically in terms of having the conditions necessary to maintain our social license,” he said, referring to the public’s willingness to accept horse racing as a legitimate form of sport. “It’s a challenge about how we as an industry are perceived within a broader group – people who are not involved in racing.”

Engelbrecht-Bresges, who is also CEO of the Hong Kong Jockey Club and chairman of the International Federation of Horse Racing Authorities, said horse racing has proven its resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, he said, the sport must contend with a kind of “long COVID”—forces that include inflation, high interest rates, the expansion of other forms of gambling and changing consumer behavior. The ARC, he said, provides an ideal forum to address those and other issues.

“In some areas, we need structural change,” Engelbrecht-Bresges said. “I’ll give you an example. If we look at Racing Australia, we have a very federated structure and funding model. So, it’s really competition between the states.”

While he said he understood where competition could be a good thing, in Australia’s case, he said, it was not good because the separate betting pools that resulted from competition diluted the pari-mutuel market and pushed bettors to fixed-odds betting, which provided less revenue for the industry.

“We must not fight each other,” he insisted. “We have to really focus and unite as one industry and fight our competitors.”

While neither the UK nor the US are members of the Asian Racing Federation, Engelbrecht-Bresges also noted the divisions in the sport in those countries. He criticized the UK’s funding model.

The UK, he said, “is probably the most challenged in terms of industry fragmentation. For our colleagues at the (British Horseracing Authority), I wouldn’t call it ‘Mission Impossible’. But it’s close. And even Tom Cruise can’t help you.

“It’s probably one of the best racing products in the world. But if you look at the returns to the owners, they’re poor. If you look at the returns to the racetracks to invest in the future, to invest in technology; there’s not enough revenue coming back into the industry to address this.”

Engelbrecht-Bresges then discussed the legal challenges to HISA in the US, with several appeals court rulings likely headed to the US Supreme Court for a final decision. Under the Federal Trade Commission, HISA oversees safety, treatment and anti-doping efforts for most racing jurisdictions in the country, but it has faced numerous legal challenges from horsemen’s groups and states who argue it is unconstitutional.

“It was a huge accomplishment to establish HISA, which was the first federal agency to ensure the integrity of the sport… When you look at the results, all of those HISA interventions have resulted in a significant reduction in horse injuries. And when you look at the one major issue of the sport, which is reducing the rate of horse injuries in racing, HISA has achieved that.

“However, HISA is at risk of being derailed by the vested interests of a few disparate industry players who are taking the matter to court… This is deeply concerning. This is a great achievement that we celebrated at the last Asian Racing Conference, but it is now under threat.”

Drew Fleming, president and CEO of Breeders’ Cup Limited, participated in the panel discussion and agreed with the assessment.

“I think it’s important to note the comments he made about the success of HISA,” Fleming said. “We’ve seen some transparent data from HISA that horse injuries are down about 38%. HISA is the law of the land, first and foremost, and it’s being enforced right now.”