Bookies must pay up, says racing chief

The British Horseracing Authority's chief executive Nic Coward has today reiterated his frustration that bookmakers are not paying enough back to the sport.

According to a major economic impact study, produced for the BHA by the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, racing's return from betting is up to eight times lower than other major racing nations which include Japan, France and the United States.

And Coward has once again stressed the need for an alternative to the "broken" Levy system, which determines the amount that bookmakers and exchanges have to pay for the product.

He said: "Deloitte's study reiterates that British horseracing, as the second biggest sporting activity in Britain after football, is a significant contributor to the leisure, agricultural and rural economies.

"It also highlights the disparity regarding the returns to the sport from betting compared to other major racing nations.

"If further demonstration of our broken system was needed, we have the second highest betting turnover of the major racing nations yet the lowest return by far from the betting industry to our sport.