Over 130,000 people have signed a recent petition calling on horse racing in the UK and Ireland to be banned citing how over 400 horses die every year due to horse racing.
The petition asks the British HorseRacing Authority to “ban this unethical sport for the rich and for the greedy”. The petition also suggests that if an outright ban fails, then the BHRA should make changes to racecourses in order to provide a safer environment for horses. This includes safer fences, reduced distances in races, a reduced number of runners in races and rehabilitation for retired horses.
Petitions such as these are an annual if not monthly occurrence, which begs the question: is horse racing still a part of British and Irish culture? I would say yes.
Don’t Bet Against Horse Racing in 2025
The thrill of a horse race is still one of Britain’s greatest pleasures and our horse racing traditions should not be lost. It is one of the longest established spectator sports and is the second most popular behind only football.
Betting on the horses is a tradition dating back to the 17th century during the reign of King James I. Anyone who knows anything about Queen Elizabeth II will know about her adoration for horse racing too – it was her favourite pastime and she owned and helped to train many champion horses right up until her death. The Queens (now the Kings) stables are worth a lot of money. Charles III sold almost 30 horses within weeks of the Queen’s death for £2.25m.
From a gamblers point of view, betting on race horses is no different from say betting on online slots or taking part in a Poker game. There is no denying the popularity of horse racing, and the sport’s most ardent critics probably wouldn’t deny that either. The main arguing point of the naysayers seems to be that the horses themselves don’t enjoy it. Well, they are for the large part wrong.
Do Horses Enjoy Racing
Simply put, a horse would not compete in a race if the horse did not enjoy it. You cannot get a horse to run against its will. They love having a ‘job’ and being with their people, horses are social animals after all. High fences are something that I do think could be done away with though, horse racing is just as fun without a fence in my opinion.
The question comes down to whether or not you think horse racing should be banned because of the number of deaths. Around 200 horses die on British racecourses per year and a higher number are killed due to injuries.
This of course is a hot topic and the debate will not end.
Feature image: Photo by Elena Rabkina on Unsplash