THE steep rise in betting shop closures across Ireland and Britain in recent months will only have a limited impact on media rights revenue for Irish racecourses.

Ladbrokes, Paddy Power and William Hill have announced plans to close a significant number of their branches, citing increased taxes and a switch to online betting as the main reasons for their decisions.

Paul Hensey, CEO of the Association of Irish Racecourses, said: “Under the previous media rights deal we received payments based on a fixed price per betting shop but that changed to a turnover-based model. When betting shops close, you would hope that their business would either go to other betting shops or online, but shop closures are not something that we like to see.”

The current media rights deal, with RMG and SIS, expires in 2028. Hensey admits it has not proved as lucrative as originally hoped.

“At the time we signed the deal the betting companies envisaged that fixed odds betting on Irish racing would take off in American markets. That has turned out to be a lot slower than predicted. But the media rights revenue is still healthy. Rate increases were built into the deal and our arrangements with RMG and SIS are performing well.”

The spectre of increased affordability checks being introduced in Britain remains a big threat to Irish media rights revenues. “We’re very dependent on what happens in the UK,” Hensey said. “British betting turnover impacts us so we are watching developments there very closely.”

Asked about how the fuel crisis could affect racecourses, Hensey said: “The whole industry is intrinsically linked. If betting shops or racecourses are hit then it feeds its way right through the system, through sponsorship or prize money, and that subsequently affects sales prices and breeders. You can complete the circle very easily.

“We’re seeing costs go up across the board. All racecourses have to operate machinery and heat buildings, so it’s a challenge. A box driver told me this week it is costing him €1,200 to fill his six-horse lorry with diesel, which is a frightening figure. We can only hope that things settle down in the Middle East soon.”