A chunk of racing convention will disappear early next spring when Tote operations come to a close at Chester and Bangor racecourses. This situation has come about as negotiations between Betfred, new owners of the Tote, and the Racecourse Management Group progress only slowly.
The Tote has had a racecourse presence since 1929, and is the sole organisation allowed to run pool betting on horse racing. Taking the Tote's place will be Bristol-based Information Tote, who will be making their first expedition into horseracing by giving a fixed-odds starting-price based service to race goers.
Richard Thomas, managing director at Chester and Bangor asserted he felt that punters would not be overly nervous about the loss of pool betting. "We believe people bet with the Tote for simplicity, not because it is a pool bet, and all windows will be open so that race goers can still place their gambles as they have done in the past. We also will be offering numerous other alternatives similar to a Placepot and a Jackpot, so hopefully the buyer won't notice too much difference"
The present agreement between the Tote/Betfred and racetracks expires on 31 March next year, and the new arrangements at the two tracks will come into place straight afterwards. Fred Done, chief of Betfred was sanguine about their decision to go it alone and take their betting operations in-house. "If Chester and Bangor do not want me there I've just got to accept it, which I have done, and we are going to be off both courses from April. It isn't my choice. They have made the decision and good luck to them with it. I think it is really brave."
Just how the Data Tote system will operate still has to be finalised, and the Firm has brought in former Tote regional director Tony May to head up the op. It's likely that Data Tote must offer some kind of guaranteed profit, as otherwise the tracks would bear any financial hit from a chain of well backed winning tops. Equally, you can't see them being happy to have to depend on large priced winners to make their profit.
Whether any other tracks will follow the lead is one of the massive questions that remains to be answered. It appears likely that the 7 racecourses controlled by Arena Leisure and the 10 run by Northerly Racing will reach a contract with Betfred that's not dissimilar the current arrangements. As things operate now, the Tote pays no Levy on its pool betting service, but does pay commission to racecourses on gambling turnover, and puts further profits into the sport through backing.
Tony Kelly, Chief Executive of Northern Racing, announced, "We are close to an understanding with Betfred and I'm expecting to have something concluded before the end of the year. I expect it to closely mirror the prevailing on course arrangements for both parties."
Information Tote , however , is actively seeking to extend its business beyond Chester and Bangor. Boss at Wetherby, Jonjo Sanderson said, "We've had some initial approaches from Info Tote and we are continuing to monitor the situation while the Racecourse Management Group negotiations are continuing. Speaking personally, I'm keen on the way that the Tote operates and I believe that our customers like it also , however it is dependent on whether the deal is best for the racecourses."
There's also a big problem that Betfred will be wrestling with. How reasonable are the current Tote pools without the liquidity provided by on course gambles? Over the last 10 years on course Pool gambling has been declining, falling from around ?106m 2002/03 to ?95m in 2010/11, when for the first time racecourse turnover fell below that from international betting partners. If that trend continues pool gambling could be in danger, but that may be counterbalanced by growth in Tote Direct income from gambling shops.
Chester and Bangor are taking kind of a risk. If they're right, and it's ease of access rather than betting in a pool that brings the punters to the Tote windows, it may well prove to be an impressed bet on their part.
The Tote has had a racecourse presence since 1929, and is the sole organisation allowed to run pool betting on horse racing. Taking the Tote's place will be Bristol-based Information Tote, who will be making their first expedition into horseracing by giving a fixed-odds starting-price based service to race goers.
Richard Thomas, managing director at Chester and Bangor asserted he felt that punters would not be overly nervous about the loss of pool betting. "We believe people bet with the Tote for simplicity, not because it is a pool bet, and all windows will be open so that race goers can still place their gambles as they have done in the past. We also will be offering numerous other alternatives similar to a Placepot and a Jackpot, so hopefully the buyer won't notice too much difference"
The present agreement between the Tote/Betfred and racetracks expires on 31 March next year, and the new arrangements at the two tracks will come into place straight afterwards. Fred Done, chief of Betfred was sanguine about their decision to go it alone and take their betting operations in-house. "If Chester and Bangor do not want me there I've just got to accept it, which I have done, and we are going to be off both courses from April. It isn't my choice. They have made the decision and good luck to them with it. I think it is really brave."
Just how the Data Tote system will operate still has to be finalised, and the Firm has brought in former Tote regional director Tony May to head up the op. It's likely that Data Tote must offer some kind of guaranteed profit, as otherwise the tracks would bear any financial hit from a chain of well backed winning tops. Equally, you can't see them being happy to have to depend on large priced winners to make their profit.
Whether any other tracks will follow the lead is one of the massive questions that remains to be answered. It appears likely that the 7 racecourses controlled by Arena Leisure and the 10 run by Northerly Racing will reach a contract with Betfred that's not dissimilar the current arrangements. As things operate now, the Tote pays no Levy on its pool betting service, but does pay commission to racecourses on gambling turnover, and puts further profits into the sport through backing.
Tony Kelly, Chief Executive of Northern Racing, announced, "We are close to an understanding with Betfred and I'm expecting to have something concluded before the end of the year. I expect it to closely mirror the prevailing on course arrangements for both parties."
Information Tote , however , is actively seeking to extend its business beyond Chester and Bangor. Boss at Wetherby, Jonjo Sanderson said, "We've had some initial approaches from Info Tote and we are continuing to monitor the situation while the Racecourse Management Group negotiations are continuing. Speaking personally, I'm keen on the way that the Tote operates and I believe that our customers like it also , however it is dependent on whether the deal is best for the racecourses."
There's also a big problem that Betfred will be wrestling with. How reasonable are the current Tote pools without the liquidity provided by on course gambles? Over the last 10 years on course Pool gambling has been declining, falling from around ?106m 2002/03 to ?95m in 2010/11, when for the first time racecourse turnover fell below that from international betting partners. If that trend continues pool gambling could be in danger, but that may be counterbalanced by growth in Tote Direct income from gambling shops.
Chester and Bangor are taking kind of a risk. If they're right, and it's ease of access rather than betting in a pool that brings the punters to the Tote windows, it may well prove to be an impressed bet on their part.
