British racing publishes Sports Gambling Sponsorship Code of Conduct

The British Horseracing Authority, supported by the Racecourse Association, has launched a Code of Conduct for British racing covering sponsorship agreements with gambling companies. The Code fulfils a policy proposal for all sports set out in the Government’s 2023 Gambling White Paper and demonstrates horseracing’s commitment to ensuring all gambling activity associated with the sport is undertaken in a responsible way.

British racing’s Code of Conduct has been developed by the British Horseracing Authority in conjunction with the Racecourse Association, stakeholders across the sport, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Betting and Gaming Council. The Code aims to ensure that minimum standards for social responsibility are implemented in all sponsorship agreements with gambling companies.

In publishing the Code, we ask that racecourses and horseracing participants commit to following the four general principles of the wider Sports Sponsorship Gambling Code when entering into sponsorship arrangements with betting companies. These are:

– Reinvestment into sport
– Maintaining sporting integrity
– Protecting children and young people
– Ensuring the promotion of betting is undertaken in a socially responsible way.

British racing’s Code sets out how racing will adopt these principles in a way which fits with the characteristics of our sport and our unique relationship with betting. Implementation of this Code will be done in conjunction with implementation of the existing Sponsorship Framework for Racehorse Owners and the Jockeys Sponsorship Code.

British racing will work with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on monitoring the impact and level of compliance with the measures set out in the Code. An operational review of the Code will be undertaken after twelve months to address any issues learned from the implementation process.

The Code can be accessed here.