The Tote consortium and Britbet have reached a £50 million seven-year agreement to significantly elevated pool betting in the UK.
The deal which will commence immediately, follows constructive discussions between the Tote consortium, made up of Betfred and Alizeti who are the current owners of the UK Tote, and Britbet, marks a significant landmark in progress for Tote betting within the UK betting sector.
The 55 racecourses which are part of Britbet will receive over £50 million over the course of the next seven years and the agreement will see the Tote and Britbet combine to offer a single pool on races run at these racecourses.
Fred Done, Founder and Chief Executive of Betfred, commented on the new agreement: “This deal builds on the hard work and achievements of the Betfred team in the seven years of our ownership of the Tote. We look forward to continuing this work as part of a new era for the Tote alongside our existing partnership with Ascot.”
As part of the agreement, the Tote brand will be maintained on the 55 racecourses which are part of Britbet. The Tote consortium will continue to develop the Tote online and in betting shops, whilst also being responsible for the digital offering and marketing of the iconic brand. In addition, the management team will explore future international co-mingling and business opportunities in order to grow pool betting.
Neil Goulden, Chairman of Britbet, also spoke of the breakthrough: “Our primary focus has been to ensure our 55 partner racecourses maximise the returns available through pool betting, and this has now been realised. We now look forward to working with the Tote consortium to deliver the innovation and investment that will allow pool betting to flourish and, in turn, serve the sport we love.
“The rollout of our new technology across the 55 racecourses along with the operational control we have been exercising since 13 July remains central to the Britbet vision. This agreement now gives us scope to deliver an even richer experience for our racecourse customers.”
The agreement also sees British racing’s media rights holders designate the Tote as the official global pool betting provider for the sport for the next seven years. This agreement will see At The Races (‘ATR’), the Racecourse Media Group (‘RMG’) and GBI Racing working together with the Tote to promote British racing around the world.
Simon Bazalgette, Chairman of Jockey Club Racecourses stated: “Today’s announcement comes on the back of months of collaborative discussions with Alex Frost’s team and due diligence to ensure a pool betting agreement between the Tote consortium and Britbet is in the best interests of British racing and racegoers. We are very pleased to support this deal on the basis that Alizeti’s approach involves significant and vital investment in the Tote, designed to grow pool betting and its returns for our sport.
“This long-term agreement means that the Tote will continue to supply the pool and betting products offered to customers at our racecourses, and Britbet will deliver the on-course service provided to those customers, meaning for the first time we will be able to manage and invest in that experience to the benefit of the customer. I would also like to thank Neil Goulden, Nigel Roddis and their Britbet team for all the hard work they have put in over many months for Britbet’s 55 racecourses.”
Martin Cruddace, Chief Executive of ARC, said: “ARC very much welcomes this deal and we are committed to developing a strong and engaging pool betting product that will be attractive to our customers. Equally, it will allow us to maximise the opportunities that a strong pool betting operation offers British racing.
“This is a landmark deal for British racing and we look forward to working with our colleagues at The Jockey Club, the other Britbet stakeholders, Alizeti and, of course, the Tote to build on this collaborative approach. Today represents a significant step forward for British Racing, and I would like to thank all involved for working together to make it possible”.
Alex Eade, General Manager of Goodwood and representing the Independent Racecourses of the Britbet partnership detailed: “This is an exciting deal and an exciting time for the industry as it demonstrates the power of the racecourses coming together to work on a particular issue. We very much look forward to the new future of the Tote with improved customer experience reinvigorating the oncourse market leading to greater revenues from both our customers in the UK and new ones abroad; revenues which will now largely stay within the sport.”