RCA to extend lunchtime racing trials after positive betting results

Lunchtime racing is to be given another chance to prove its worth this autumn with five more midweek meetings as racing continues to seek ways of combating the shock slump in its revenue.

There have been enough positive signs of increased turnover from the initial trial of three lunchtime fixtures in May and June for the Racecourse Association to back a further trial of five meetings in consecutive weeks in September and October.

This has been welcomed by beleaguered bookmakers, who are closing hundreds of betting shops in the wake of the government's crackdown on fixed odds betting terminals, limiting the stake to £2 a bet from three figures.

The lunch meetings again will start at 12.15 with the first four races at 30-minute intervals to try and attract punters during their lunch breaks, resurrecting lost turnover that has seen William Hill announce the imminent closure of around 700 betting shops and Ladbrokes up to another 900.

Racing is still reeling from the £17m fall in levy income announced earlier in the year with the knock-on effect of lost media rights from closing betting shop fees.

The first set of trials were held at the bidding of the Levy Board's Betting Liason group and consisted of three fixtures held at Southwell, Newton Abbot and Nottingham during May and June earlier this year.

The latest five meetings will start on September 25 and conclude on October 23 with four meetings on Wednesday and the October 17 at Carlisle falling on Thursday.

Autumn lunchtime racing trail meetings

September 25: Redcar
October 2 : Bangor
October 9 : Ludlow
October 17 : Carlisle
October 23 : Worcester

Andy Clifton, racing director at the RCA, said: "The trial of lunchtime racing earlier this year demonstrated that there's an appetite from betting customers for racing at this time of day and I'm grateful to all of the racecourses taking part this autumn.

"We wanted to gain further evidence from bookmakers, horsemen, racecourses and racegoers from an extended trial over five consecutive weeks to ascertain whether this might become a more permanent part of the fixture mix moving forward, especially in a time of falling revenues."

Clifton, who joined the RCA following nearly three years as the head of communications and sponsorship at Newbury racecourse, continued: "There were a couple of challenges with the first trial in that the three meetings were perhaps too well-spaced, and that after all the details were sorted the lead-in time was relatively short.

"Given there was some pretty positive feedback, it made sense to give it a longer run to gather more data but also to get it in the psyche of people that during the spring and autumn periods lunchtime racing is something that could work."

Clifton, providing a rare piece of good news regarding betting shops in the context of the lunchtime racing trials, added: "Obviously the idea was not to rob betting income from the afternoon, rather to enhance betting volume throughout the day. During the first trial we particularly saw improvement in betting shops in this regard."

David Stevens, Head of PR at Coral, welcomed the RCA announcement, and said: "As we said when the original trials finished it was something that was very much welcomed.

David Stevens: 'Something we will continue to utilise going forward'Credit: Edward Whitaker

"We're behind anything that has the potential to increase betting turnover on racing and the feeling earlier this year was positive, but that generally the trial period was not long enough, hence why we very much welcome this extension to it."

"We now share our data with the racecourses, and the more data we can gather the better. There were no negatives from the first trial and this extension should give us a better indication of the impacts it may have going forward."

Download the knowledge of more than 200 experts with our free mobile app – it lets you study the form, get the latest tips and place a bet on the go. Get the app here