On 10 September 2025 there will be no racing at Carlisle, Uttoxeter, Lingfield or Kempton. Instead, people from across the sport will travel to Westminster for a campaign event. Owners, trainers, jockeys, stable staff and racecourse teams plan to stand together and set out why a planned change to betting tax would hurt racing.
It is the first time that British racing has chosen not to race for a day. The move is meant to make the case in the clearest way possible: treat racing fairly on tax.
Why has racing decided to strike?
The government is looking at a single, higher tax rate on betting of 21 per cent. At the moment, bets on racing are taxed at 15 per cent and are treated differently from online casino games.
The new plan would remove that difference. People in racing argue that the sport is not the same as casino play and that a higher rate would push up costs in a business that already runs on tight margins. They say the change would drain money from racecourses and stables and would not help fans either.
Industry groups say the cost would be large and felt fast. Studies shared by the British Horseracing Authority suggest racing could lose around £330 million over five years, with about 2,700 jobs at risk in the first year.
Even if you treat those figures as estimates, they point in one direction. Less money in the system means fewer horses in training, smaller fields, and a squeeze on pay and facilities. Over time, that risks a thinner fixture list and a poorer show for people who love going racing.
What does betting tax have to do with the raceday you see?
Here is the simple chain. Bookmakers pay tax on their profits. When the rate goes up, they have to find the money somewhere.
That can mean cutting back on sponsorships, paying less for media rights, or offering smaller promotions. Racecourses rely on media and sponsorship income to keep prize money and facilities up to scratch.
Trainers rely on prize money and owners’ confidence to keep horses in work. If any link in that chain is weakened, it feeds through the whole sport.
There is a human side as well. Racing is a major rural employer. A yard full of horses needs grooms, work riders, farriers, vets and feed suppliers.
A raceday brings business to local hotels, pubs, minicabs and catering firms. Racing estimates that about five million people attend meetings each year, and that the sport adds around £4.1 billion to the economy.
You can feel that in market towns near training centres and on the high streets of racing hubs. Take money out of the sport and many of those businesses feel it.
Why is racing different from casino games?
Racing is a sport first. It has a breeding base, a long season, and a live event that people travel to watch. It runs under strict rules, with equine welfare and rider safety at the centre. The betting part sits around that sport and helps pay for it.
Casino games are designed to be played at any time with no live event attached. When you tax both in exactly the same way, you ignore that link between the bet and the sport on the track. People in racing are asking for tax that reflects that link, not special treatment for the sake of it.
What will happen on the day itself?
The four fixtures will be called off and moved to new dates. The plan is to keep the focus on the Westminster event. You can expect speeches from racing leaders, trainers, jockeys and owners. Many will travel in from yards and racecourses around the country.
There is no plan to block roads or cause trouble. The aim is a simple show of unity and a clear message to MPs and ministers. Welfare remains a red line, so any horses due to run on that day will be looked after as normal at home.
Who stands to lose if the tax rise goes ahead?
Big names will always shout loudest, yet the first to feel a squeeze are often the smallest. Think of a family yard with a dozen horses, or a local trainer who relies on one or two owners.
A cut in prize money can be the difference between taking on an extra lad or not, or whether an owner keeps a horse in training through the winter. Small racecourses could also be at risk. They serve as the base layer of the fixture list, and they help bring through young horses and riders. If media income falls, those tracks are exposed.
Fans can lose out too. If the sport shrinks, you get fewer runners and less choice of meetings. Ticket prices can creep up as courses try to balance the books. Local towns lose a lively day’s trade. None of that helps racing reach new people, and new people are vital for any sport that wants to stay healthy.
What racing is asking for
The message is not “no tax”. It is “fair tax that fits the sport”. Racing wants a system that keeps bets on the sport separate from casino play, or at least keeps the rate at a level that does not choke off income that flows back into prize money, welfare, and jobs.
The strike day is there to make that case in public, in one voice, and to ask the government to sit down with the sport and find a plan that works.
How you can support the sport
If you care about racing, there are a few simple things you can do. Write to your MP and set out why you think the sport should be treated fairly on tax. Share clear, respectful posts on social media so people understand what is at stake.
Support your local track when fixtures resume, and back the owners, trainers and staff who keep the show on the road. This is a debate that should be won with facts and calm voices, not noise.
What happens next?
After 10 September the attention shifts to the Autumn Budget. Racing will keep talking to government, and ministers will weigh up the wider impact of any change. The sport knows it must make its case well, with evidence and with a plan for growth.
If the message lands, the result could be a system that protects jobs, keeps fields healthy, and gives fans the lively, varied calendar they enjoy.
The strike is not the end goal. It is a one-day pause to make a point that words alone have not yet landed. Racing is a part of British life. It fills weekdays and weekends across the year, it gives people work and pride in their craft, and it brings friends and families together at the track.
On 10 September the sport will stop to be heard. After that, it hopes to get back to what it does best, putting on good racing for the many people who love it.
