OpinionDavid Jennings
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I surprised myself by not actually hating the Racing League - and with a couple of tweaks it might be even better

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Deputy Ireland editor
Ado McGuinness (left) and Kevin Blake celebrate Ireland's Racing League win
The 2023 Racing League champions: Ado McGuinness with manager Kevin BlakeCredit: JOHN GROSSICK

A few days ago the inimitable Icy ran a poll on X, the artist formerly known as Twitter, simply asking the question: Has the 2023 Racing League done enough to justify a 2024 Racing League? There was a good turnout too, with 3,871 people voting, and, unbelievably, 52 per cent of them said yes.

I say unbelievably because this time last year the idea the Racing League would return for a third season, never mind a fourth one, seemed about as likely as the Friends spin-off Joey returning to our screens. That was cancelled after two seasons in May 2006 due to low ratings because it was bloody brutal. As brutal as it was, though, I would have preferred to watch Matt LeBlanc cracking cringe jokes than watch a team horseracing event nobody cared about.

The Racing League looked doomed to fail from day one; the concept was ridiculous. Yet somehow it is surviving. And, given that X is the platform where moaners, whingers and whiners congregate to get stuff off their chest, it is quite an achievement for 52 per cent of 3,871 glass-half-empty people to vote for its return in 2024. I was flabbergasted.

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