Simon Cox appointed new BHA Chair

Simon Cox has been appointed as the new independent non-executive Chair of the British Horseracing Authority (BHA). He will assume his position on 1 October 2026.

A passionate owner-breeder and accomplished business leader, Cox has a deep understanding of the British racing and breeding industry, combined with extensive board-level experience and large-scale commercial expertise.

Cox has been a member of the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association (TBA) board of trustees since November 2021 and chairs the BHA’s Jump Pattern Committee, which makes recommendations to the BHA Board on how to continually strengthen the Jump Pattern and Listed programme.

A former Professional Jockeys Association (PJA) board member, Cox is a member of the industry’s High Quality Horse group, which is contributing to wider work to grow the number of horses – and particularly top-class horses – being bred, owned, trained and raced in Britain.

An owner of racehorses for more than 15 years with four horses currently in training, Cox has established himself as a thoroughbred breeder, with 10 broodmares stationed at Shade Oak Stud – also home to St Leger winner-turned-stallion Logician, in whom he owns shares.

A master brewer by profession, Cox spent over three decades in the international beer and beverage industry in increasingly senior leadership roles, overseeing global supply chain management, business transformation, turnaround and growth.

In 2014 he was appointed European president and chief executive officer of Molson Coors, a role which expanded to include Africa, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. The company generated circa £2 billion turnover and employed 6,500 people. Cox led multi-billion-pound acquisitions and delivered consistent growth through a focus on the customer and the consumer.

Throughout his career he has established strong political relationships, most recently through his board roles with the Portman Group, the British Beer & Pub Association and The Brewers of Europe. He has been involved in successful government engagement and lobbying, including the brewing industry campaign to abolish the beer duty escalator in 2013.

Prior to commencing his role on 1 October 2026, Cox will meet and engage with people from across racing, breeding and betting to listen to their views, plan for the sport’s growth and future prosperity, and how the industry can work together to achieve this.

Commenting on his appointment, Simon Cox said:

“It is an honour be appointed Chair of the British Horseracing Authority at such an important moment for racing and breeding.

“I enjoyed a long and fulfilling career in the brewing and beverage sector, but horseracing has always been my passion. I have been extremely fortunate to be involved in this wonderful sport for many years, during which I have learned a great deal – and contributed a fair amount too, I hope.

“British racing and breeding is a worldwide success story. We are an industry that is globally renowned for our equine welfare standards, the fairness and integrity of our competition and the quality of our participants, our horses and our racing.

“It’s no secret that we face significant challenges and my focus will be on ensuring racing works together to address these, with a particular emphasis on growing participation in the sport, our customer base and critically our income streams.

"There is really good work already underway in so many areas, but there is also much to do to set our industry up to thrive for generations to come.”

Nominations Committee Chair and BHA Board member, Kyrsten Halley, said:

“On behalf of the Nominations Committee we are delighted to have recommended Simon to the BHA Board. He was a first-class candidate throughout a highly competitive recruitment process, with some exceptionally skilled and high calibre individuals.

“We were particularly impressed with Simon’s in-depth knowledge and understanding of British racing and breeding, accumulated over many years as an owner-breeder and investor in our sport, alongside his experience and expertise from a truly impressive commercial career. 

“He is acutely aware of the nature of the challenges our industry faces and articulated a clear and compelling plan for how we seek to address them.

“His strong vision for how we make progress in key areas like the sport’s governance, growth strategy, equine and human welfare and government relations left us in no doubt that he has the credentials to provide exceptional leadership at a critical time for our industry.”

BHA Interim Chair and Senior Independent Director, David Jones, said:

“Simon is already a very well-established and deeply respected figure within our industry, known among participants and racecourses as an advocate for British racing and bloodstock and for his considered and collaborative leadership approach.

“He is also someone who possesses a steely determination and decisiveness and is, at heart, unwaveringly passionate about seeing British racing succeed.

“Simon has been a valuable asset to our industry for many years as a fan, owner, breeder, investor and active participant, and has the necessary skillset and demeanour to be an accomplished and successful BHA Chair.”