Racing used to be a game of real social relevance with huge crowds attending on a regular basis, the media giving it ample coverage and a resultant glamour tag that did wonders for the popularity of the sport. The course was the place to be with punting widely supported and many attendees having dreams of one day owning their own horse.
We know that this description of racing now belongs in the history books, the exception being big feature race days and a few racing festivals annually. Times have changed and the deregulation of other forms of gambling has created new challenges for racing operators globally. Also from within its own ranks racing are facing numerous new challenges with tote operators, bookmakers, online operators and betting exchanges all competing for a slice of a cake that has not had icing and cherries for some time.
To their credit, betting operators have actually managed to cope quite well given all of these headwinds, by diversification of their businesses, highly successful utilisation of the churn based model and by instituting essential cost cutting exercises. The pressure is growing however and since most practical options have been exhausted the future will be characterised by reduced profit margins as everyone competes for increased market share.
It is hard to see racing as we know it now surviving as far more lucrative options could see racing operators switching their attentions away from the game that we love and are passionate about. The greatest risk at present is that many betting operators have lost their belief in the sport and in the ability of racing, and tote betting in particular, to contribute meaningfully to the bottom line of their businesses.
This is a situation that needs to be remedied and Scoreline Wagering Enterprises sees it as our main objective to restore a belief in racing and pool betting through an all-out entertainment driven wagering approach.
I have talked before about the need to make our sport more appealing to a much broader and significantly changed market which could be done far easier than thought and at no great cost to individual operators. Two previous blog articles mention elements that I deem absolutely vital to growing racing in a modern society. The first is the creation of pure entertainment driven wagering products and the second is the crucial initial involvement period which will determine a lost opportunity or ensure committed long term and regular support.
The third essential element which I would like to briefly touch on is the need to give racing a much needed social character as this is one area that the youth of today still relates to as can be seen by the popularity of social media like Facebook and Twitter.
Racehorse ownership has already benefitted from syndication efforts and a similar strategy will benefit the punting side of the business as well. Racing needs to be promoted as a group activity which would create many new opportunities amongst both younger and older segments of society. Group involvement will promote regular participation, make the learning process a lot more fun, improve affordability and lead to significant word of mouth benefits. Products that support group involvement, especially those that offer life changing prize money and long term participation through competition and league offerings will have a high probability of success.
By making group involvement possible and preferable and marketing the product along these lines a major social opportunity will be created that will offer racing the best chance of sustainable growth in future. Social relevance will ensure increased media exposure as numerical and social significance is a strong journalistic and advertising motivator. Over time this combination will change racing from socially relevant to socially desirable and return our sport to the leading role that it held for many decades.