Owner Relations

Owner Relations is a new function launched in 2025, with the primary objective of improving the retention of owners within British racing. 

It is a cross-industry initiative looking holistically at the owner experience. 

Owners are crucial, investing circa £500 million annually in training and racing fees alone – when you factor in the cost of buying a horse, the total value is far greater. Figures show that year after year, our total net owner number is declining – more owners are leaving than joining – especially true for those with sole ownerships. So how do we at least start to address this issue? To have even the smallest impact or influence here, we need to understand why it is happening.

Therefore, our vision is that anyone investing in ownership within British Racing is recognised by the industry, and key service providers are supported in retaining owners and their horses in British Racing.

All owners should feel like valued investors because like any customer, they have choices about where to spend their money.  We need to understand why owners leave; at present we simply don’t know all the reasons and that is why a key objective for the new team, at least in the short-term, is to keep owners in racing. 

Providing dedicated resources in this area was a key recommendation of a cross-industry working group, tasked with looking holistically at the owner experience. The future vision for the new team is that anyone investing in ownership is known to the industry and recognised for their investment, whether that’s through sole, shared or a combination of ownerships. The Owner Relations work will be led by the ROA, but the team will be advocating on behalf of all owners within British racing.

If you would like to speak to one of the Owner Relations team please contact Kate Freeman, Head of Owner Relations, at [email protected].