On 16 July, the 2022/2023 racing season came to an end in Hong Kong. And the numbers from the former crown colony are impressive. With only 1,250 horses in training - about 0.7 per cent of the world`s horse population - Hong Kong`s racing once again proved its world-class quality. Golden Sixty, the first horse in Hong Kong racing history to be named Horse of the Year three times in a row, and fellow G1 winners Lucky Sweynesse and Romantic Warrior feature in the top seven of the LONGINES World`s Best Racehorse Rankings. They performed amazingly against international rivals in the international spotlight on FWD Champions Day on 30 April 2023, winning the day`s three Group 1 races - the G1 FWD Champions Mile (1600m), the G1 Chairman`s Sprint Prize (1200m) and the G1 FWD QEII Cup (2000m) - in commanding fashion.
"Hong Kong`s world-class racing is based not only on our state-of-the-art racing facilities, but more importantly on a rich and growing pool of racing talent at all levels - from trainers, jockeys, veterinarians to stable hands and farriers, and so on. The Hong Kong Jockey Club is committed to attracting world-class talent from overseas and nurturing promising local talent. I am delighted that our racing talents and the horses they train and care for are delivering remarkable performances to fans locally and around the world this season. They are the future of racing in Hong Kong," said CEO, Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges.
The season also marked the full return of racing in Hong Kong to normality after three years of the COVID pandemic. In the first few months after the season opened in September 2022, when COVID restrictions were still in place in the territory, the Club, with the support of the Hong Kong SAR Government, managed to overcome the challenges and host one of the first international sporting events in Hong Kong - the internationally renowned LONGINES Hong Kong International Races 2022 in December 2022, which saw over 300 overseas race participants and more than 45,000 people flock to Sha Tin Racecourse and Happy Valley Racecourse to witness Hong Kong horses win three out of four Group 1 races. The success of this event is a timely and compelling example to the world that Hong Kong is back on the international stage.
Following the lifting of the COVID measures, the Club has responded quickly and effectively to bring local racing fans and visitors from the Mainland back to the racecourses to enjoy not only our spectacular races but also our remarkable racecourse entertainments with the popular Happy Wednesday brand as the highlight. A notable example is that more than 84,000 people attended Chinese New Year`s Race Day, the first race day after Hong Kong`s full return to normality to usher in a new good year.
"What has sustained racing in Hong Kong during the COVID pandemic of more than three years is resilience. What makes us effectively seize the opportunity of reopening and seize every chance to develop and strengthen racing in Hong Kong is our inimitable `can-do` spirit. I am proud of the determination, efforts and support of a large group of stakeholders who love racing, including our owners, trainers, jockeys, club staff and our racing fans. I am confident that with the support of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government, racing in Hong Kong will continue to play an important role as the most popular sport in the city and an international brand for Hong Kong," said Engelbrecht-Bresges.
During the past season, the Club has worked hard to overcome the challenges created by the COVID pandemic. The Club recognises that the experience of our valuable owners at the racecourses was significantly affected during the worst of the COVID pandemic, as their presence and activities during a racing event were restricted due to the implementation of stringent public health measures. In a bid to stimulate owners` interest in racing, the club announced in May the record-breaking prize money and incentive structure of HK$1.73 billion for the 2023/24 season. This included an 8% increase in the prize money pool for domestic racing and an increase in the PP bonus system. The Club is confident that these attractive incentives and increasing returns on investment will encourage our owners to bring more quality horses to Hong Kong to ensure continued excellence of Hong Kong horses on the international stage.
Given the current economic situation, it is not surprising that sales to Hong Kong customers showed a slight decline of 0.3 per cent. The club`s strategy of marketing Hong Kong races globally through mixed sales has been a great success and currently accounts for 19.6 per cent of total sales. This season saw an increase of 3.9 per cent, which helped to mitigate the impact of the slight decline in sales to Hong Kong customers.
The increasing popularity of Simulcast broadcasts of overseas races and the growing appreciation of the global nature of racing contributed to a 12.5% growth in Simulcast revenue to over HK$11.8 billion. While the majority of Simulcast`s revenue came from Hong Kong clients, which recorded an 11.3% increase to HK$10.5 billion, revenue generated through the World Pool from overseas clients and partners increased by 23% to HK$1.3 billion.
The club has established Hong Kong as a global hub for betting on the world`s best races, with even greater business potential for the future. Revenue from all simulcast races conducted under the World Pool brand (including Hong Kong and overseas customers) has increased from HK$6.2 billion in the 2021/22 season to HK$7.3 billion, an 18.5% increase. In addition, the World Pool partnership was expanded to include races from Australia, Saudi Arabia and Germany for the first time.
Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said: "Given the difficult economic situation, our total turnover of HK$141.1 billion for the season is very satisfactory. The strength of the turnover reflects the quality of our products and the continued support from our customers. However, we will remain vigilant as we face significant challenges after the borders reopen. To ensure that our racing remains competitive and maintains its world-class status, we will again invest in track facilities and improve the customer experience. We will also take advantage of the unique `one country, two systems` development opportunity in the GBA. After all, the Club acts for the benefit of society. Everything we do is to contribute more to our community with a strategic focus that best meets the needs of the people of Hong Kong."
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