Racing Digital in 2026

An update on Racing Digital from of Robert Glenister, Chief Operating Officer at Racing Digital:

2026 represents a significant year for everyone here at Racing Digital and for our partners across the industry.

For those of you who aren’t aware, Racing Digital is a limited company set up by the BHA and Weatherbys to replace the current BHA Racing Administration site and modernise and simplify the core administrative processes for British Racing. The BHA and Weatherbys are the shareholders, but Racing Digital is a discrete entity in its own right.

The Hub

Once launched, the Racing Digital Hub will overhaul and modernise how people complete the racing-related administrative tasks that allow everyone to participate in our sport, simplifying management processes and making things easier for all users, as well as enabling the more intelligent and effective use of data.

This includes activities such as managing ownership and registrations, licensing information and searching for and entering races, in a far simpler, clearer and faster way than is currently possible, reducing duplications, manual inputs and making it easier for users to find the information they need, when they need it.

Crucially, it will do this on a technology platform that sets British Racing up for long-term success, ready to adopt and embrace future technological developments, and which supports the modernisation of the industry.

Parts of this approach are already familiar to the industry through the fixture planning tool, which has been in use for the past three years and has helped to shorten and simplify a complex process. The full Hub is intended to deliver similar, everyday benefits, supported by a dedicated in-house engineering team and clear guidance and support, so that when the system goes live it provides immediate, practical value.

This is why taking the time to complete the build properly, test it thoroughly and engage users ahead of launch is so important, and why we believe the finished product will be worth the wait.

To drive the project forward, over the last 12 months, there have been several major changes to Racing Digital and the programme, which we wanted to explain in further detail.

Leadership

The first is that Rob Glenister is now COO and heads the organisation. Rob has worked on the programme and in the racing industry for several years now and subsequently understands the significant positive impact that Racing Digital can have once launched, along with the challenges the programme has faced along the way.

Governance

In addition, having overseen this project from the outset, the Chair of Racing Digital, Chris Batterham, was asked to step down from his role by the Racing Digital Board.

We understand why he would be disappointed at the Board’s decision, but we were still very disappointed by the manner in which he then chose to publicise his inaccurate comments in a recent Racing Post article. We, along with Weatherbys, the BHA and our board members, absolutely reject the claims he made.

We are wholly focused and aligned on objectives to get Racing Digital delivered. Under Chris’ leadership, the project has, as we have acknowledged, met with delays, but we are now positioned far better to deliver the work and get this important project completed.

Engineering

Another key shift to the programme was the decision to move away from working with an external technology provider, and establish a talented, robust and flexible in-house engineering team. This has given us a greater degree of control over what and how the system was built, and significantly reduces the cost of delivery

Since we introduced these new ways of working early last year, our restructured team has made excellent progress on the project. As a result, we now anticipate Racing Digital to be fully developed and tested by the end of this year, with a view to launching to the industry in early 2027. Throughout 2026, industry stakeholders will begin to benefit from enhanced data capabilities introduced in phases, laying the groundwork for the full system launch.

We are in the process of setting up further sessions with our core stakeholder groups to showcase the Hub and ensure our plans continue to align with their preferences and ways of working. We have already been in touch with several groups to coordinate these meetings and will continue our outreach work in the coming months.

Racing Digital in 2026

We recognise that the delays, combined with the lack of engagement in recent years, have been frustrating and understand the disappointment they have caused. However, we believe the recent changes to the organisation will enable us to fulfil our sole focus: delivering the programme to an outstanding standard.

Following this, we are committing to providing regular progress updates on the Racing Digital Hub, on this website and across our other channels, in the media and directly with our partners across the industry. We are well aware that a lack of communication has only fuelled uncertainty and speculation, and we will be more open and transparent throughout 2026, as we approach the launch.

While the journey has not been without its challenges, we are now confident in delivering a solution that will redefine how the industry is managed and operated at every level.

We welcome your feedback and views and will look to engage with you directly in more detail in the coming months.

Find out more by visiting www.racingdigital.co.uk or reading our FAQs

Get in touch with the team on [email protected]