No World Pool on British Champions Day but Sky and RTV set to screen action

Hopes that Ascot on Qipco British Champions Day could be the stage for another World Pool – where pool bets from across around the world are brought together to produce greater liquidity and more robust dividends – have been shelved, for now.

It has also emerged that both racing channels look set to cover the October 19 card alongside mainstream broadcaster ITV.

The first World Pool at this year's Royal Ascot was hailed as a "seminal moment" for pool betting, with money invested into all the pools run at the royal meeting totalling £92 million compared with £17m last year, an increase of 440 per cent.

The increase was fuelled by the involvement of the Hong Kong Jockey Club who, in partnership with Totepool and Ascot, created the World Pool into which bets from the United Kingdom, Hong Kong and 11 other countries – Australia, New Zealand, Macau, Singapore, Netherlands, Germany, Finland, Norway, the United States, Canada and South Africa – were commingled.

The ambition of holding another World Pool was mentioned in the aftermath of the royal meeting but British Champions Series chief executive Rod Street said: "There will not be a World Pool at Ascot on Qipco British Champions Day.

"Delivering the inaugural World Pool at Royal Ascot was a major task and there are a number of administrative and technical matters we need to address to make it work for all partners on British Champions Day.

"We've targeted Ascot 2020 as the realistic year to deliver it. Importantly, Hong Kong will be taking all races this year, as they have done previously, and they are the major partner."

Ascot moved to the rebranded Sky Sports Racing channel this year but that did not initially include Champions Day because the rights are held separately.

Street added: "We anticipate that Sky Sports Racing will be broadcasting on Qipco British Champions Day, as well as Racing TV and are just agreeing the fine detail.

"Their presence will reflect the same arrangements we had in the early years of the event, with both RUK and ATR sharing the digital platform.

"The principal broadcaster on the day is ITV, which will be hosting the meeting exclusively, as it does with Royal Ascot and the Derby."

Champions Day was shown on both channels before Ascot's switch to Racing UK from At The Races in 2014.

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