Ascot carries out threat to leave Racecourse Association sparking major rupture in British racing

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Ascot, the royal racecourse, has issued the stunning announcement that it will follow through with its threat to leave the Racecourse Association (RCA) at the end of the year, raising major questions about the future of the body and the way British racing is governed.

Britain's most prestigious racecourse had been among the signatories to a letter to RCA chair Wilf Walsh in March calling for an urgent review of the organisation's governance "to support industry change" and requesting a proposal for reform by the end of April. 

The RCA is set to undertake a 12-week governance review and the Jockey Club said it is committed to participating in ongoing talks. However, it too warned that it would not renew its membership of the RCA at the end of the year unless it is happy with the resulting proposals for change.

• Jockey Club issues fresh ultimatum and threatens to join Ascot in quitting Racecourse Association 
• Comment: Ascot has gone over the top alone - where the royal racecourse has led, others must eventually follow 

It is not yet clear whether the other signatories of the letter – Goodwood, Newbury and York – as well as Chester, will follow Ascot by leaving their trade body, but York did say it had been encouraged by the "collaborative and constructive discussions".

The RCA is yet to give an official response to Ascot's announcement.

The racecourses' ultimatum to the RCA came following the resignation of Lord Allen as BHA chair in March.

In a statement on Monday, Ascot chief executive Felicity Barnard said: "The decision to move away from the RCA was not taken lightly and was guided by our view that this is in the interests of the long-term health of the sport.

“In the period since March 3, we have engaged constructively with the RCA and remained clear and consistent with our request for governance reform; reform that we believe is necessary to reflect the evolving needs of our sport and its stakeholders.

"The decision to move away from the RCA was not taken lightly and was guided by our view that this is in the interests of the long-term health of the sport"Credit: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)

“Regrettably, sufficient progress has not been made. We remain committed to working collaboratively within the industry to enable Ascot to continue to contribute to the shared success of the sport."

The rebel courses said their objectives were aimed at ensuring the RCA "board and voting representation is balanced and credible", that "significant views from key racecourses can influence outcomes", and that "the organisation can act decisively on matters affecting the wider industry".

They also gave their support to "strong central leadership for British racing by the BHA, enabled by the establishment of an independent BHA board", and that they believed the present governance arrangements "prevent timely and effective decision-making".

An independent BHA board had been one of Lord Allen's conditions for joining the governing body.

• Major racecourses demand urgent reform after Lord Allen quits as BHA chair 

At the time, Barnard warned: "We would be prepared to leave [the RCA], and that statement is not made lightly." 

In its statement on Monday, Ascot said discussions since March had been "extensive and good-natured" but that changes in the RCA's voting structure and board representation had not been delivered to its satisfaction.

Ascot is not the first racecourse to leave the RCA. Towcester was not a member when racing ceased at the venue in 2018.

Savill: 'I can see Ascot's point of view'

Plumpton also left the RCA at the end of 2024, with owner Peter Savill saying that the representatives of small independent courses on the RCA board did not share his views on better prize-money contributions. He also said Plumpton was not asked who the small independent representatives should be. 

On Monday, the former BHB chairman said he understood why Ascot had made its decision.

Savill said: "Essentially, the structure of the board, and also some of the representation of those seats, is what they appear to be unhappy about. If the RCA is to survive, it needs to have a more transparent system of how board members are appointed and what is fair representation between the courses. 

"I see Ascot coming to the same conclusions we came to, that their views were not really being represented at board level. I know the large independents have their own seat, but they felt they didn't have enough say and I can see their point of view in the structure and personnel of the board. 

"Getting a proper balance between large and small courses, and ensuring that the seats are held by people who are working in the best interests of the sport, is critical and I hope the RCA can enable that outcome as it looks at its internal structure.”

Leading trainer Ralph Beckett, formerly the president of the National Trainers Federation, also gave his backing to Ascot and the Jockey Club.

He said: "Ascot and the Jockey Club should be applauded by all who have the sport’s best interests at heart, and the National Trainers Federation is backing them to the hilt. The current structure isn't working, so why carry on with it? Doing the same and expecting something to change is the very definition of madness.

"The BHA isn't going to become fit for purpose for some time without a chair, so why wait? We haven't got time, and why assume that when the BHA gets a chair, things will get better? History tells us that is folly."

The RCA, founded in 1907 as the racecourse trade body in Britain, is one of the members, or shareholders, of the BHA, along with the Racehorse Owners Association, Thoroughbred Breeders' Association and licensed personnel, which covers other participants. The RCA gets two of the four member-nominated directors in the BHA board, as well as a representative on the board of the Levy Board.

Under the articles of the BHA, the RCA is a member of the governing body until it ceases to be "the person most representative in Great Britain of the interests of owners of racecourses".

However, the RCA cannot be removed as a member unless the BHA can recommend an alternative representative group for racecourses.

The BHA said it had noted Ascot's announcement. 

A spokesperson added: "This is, at present, primarily a matter for the RCA and racecourses, but we will of course discuss this development with the BHA board and in liaison with racecourses and their representative body as part of ongoing conversations about the sport’s governance." 

Read these next . . .

Ascot chief: 'This is not the start of a war among racecourses - but it shows our strength of feeling' 

Jockey Club issues fresh ultimatum and threatens to join Ascot in quitting Racecourse Association

Comment: Ascot has gone over the top alone - where the royal racecourse has led, others must eventually follow 

Racecourses at war: inside the bombshell ultimatum that could plunge British racing into further chaos 

Major racecourses demand urgent reform after Lord Allen quits as BHA chair 

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