associations
betting exchanges
betting strategy
bloodstock agents
bookmakers
breeders cup
cheltenham festival
epsom derby
fixtures 2005
fun and games
glorious goodwood
grand national
holidays & tours
race horses
hospitality
information & tips
jockeys
laying horses
links sites
odds comparison
overseas racing
portals
punchestown
racecourses
race horse trainers
royal ascot
horse sales
software
stud farms
syndicates
york ebor

Fears of a fixtures free-for-all have been allayed after the British Horseracing Board announced it had reached an agreement with the Office of Fair Trading.

In its Rule 14 Notice of April 8, 2003, the OFT provisionally concluded that some of the arrangements relating to racing constituted an infringement of Chapter 1 of the Competition Act 1998.

The report said aspects of the fixture list and prize-money distribution, and also the sale of pre-race data rights breached competition law.

Racing's governing body had warned of a fixture chaos which could lead to the closure of some of the country's smaller courses if the OFT's recommendations were fully adopted.

Explaining how he convinced the OFT otherwise, BHB chairman Peter Savill, who is in his last month in office after six years in the post, told BBC Radio 4: "What we have managed to do is persuade them that a fixture free-for-all would have been detrimental for the sport.

"It would have handed control of the sport to the bookmakers and closed many of our smaller courses.

"We sat down and talked to them (OFT) for a very long time and I think they eventually got the message that some of the things they wanted to do would actually be detrimental to customers and consumers, which is what their interest is.

"We've made some changes that they are obviously attracted by. We are separating the commercial and governance functions within the sport. We are bringing competition into the fixture list. We are involving racecourses much more in the development of data income.

"All the things which they were keen to happen. We persuaded them that open competition between all-weather racing and jumping, which would have led to the demise of jumping, should not happen and jumping should be treated as a separate sport.

"We've shown them that breaking up the central selling of data would destroy the financial stability of the sport, which would have been very bad for punters and consumers."