Care in the community could be way for racing to gain government support
Rugby league last week became the first sport to become the beneficiary of government funds to stave off the potentially devastating financial effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, in turn providing lessons for other sports like racing on how to gain support in Westminster.
There were fears that rugby league would not be able to survive as a professional sport due to the effects of the lockdown, prompting the government to step in and provide the game with a £16 million emergency loan.
The rationale for the intervention was not based on raw economics or the need to secure tax income, it was instead to safeguard the future of the sport, a point reinforced by Steve Barclay, the chief secretary to the Treasury who added: "Rugby league is a sport that makes a significant social impact in the communities it serves."
Read the full story
Read award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing, with exclusive news, interviews, columns, investigations, stable tours and subscriber-only emails.
Subscribe to unlock
- Racing Post digital newspaper (worth over £100 per month)
- Award-winning journalism from the best writers in racing
- Expert tips from the likes of Tom Segal and Paul Kealy
- Replays and results analysis from all UK and Irish racecourses
- Form study tools including the Pro Card and Horse Tracker
- Extensive archive of statistics covering horses, trainers, jockeys, owners, pedigree and sales data
Already a subscriber?Log in
Published on inComment
Last updated
Copy- We know that times are tight - but racecourses really do need to step up and improve outdated weighing rooms
- The budget has heaped even more trouble on racing - and I fear many trainers will now decide the numbers just don't add up
- Why I think Cheltenham Festival handicaps need to change - JP McManus writes exclusively for the Racing Post
- No-one has ever emerged from the womb wearing a trilby - racing's future survival hangs on pursuing a young audience
- Four score and ten just a number to Peter Harris as July Cup triumph shows there's more to the elderly than medical conditions
- We know that times are tight - but racecourses really do need to step up and improve outdated weighing rooms
- The budget has heaped even more trouble on racing - and I fear many trainers will now decide the numbers just don't add up
- Why I think Cheltenham Festival handicaps need to change - JP McManus writes exclusively for the Racing Post
- No-one has ever emerged from the womb wearing a trilby - racing's future survival hangs on pursuing a young audience
- Four score and ten just a number to Peter Harris as July Cup triumph shows there's more to the elderly than medical conditions