David Leyden Dunbar, Director of Commercial Strategy & Partnerships for Arena Racing Company, said: “Building on the momentum of last year’s Festive period, I’m pleased that we were able to work with our partners at Coral and ITV, and in collaboration with our racecourse colleagues, to bring this exciting idea to fruition.
By aligning the calendar across these four days we hope that each meeting can fulfil its full potential and we can continue to appeal to racing fans everywhere by delivering a top class Festive Festival of Jumps Racing.”
Industry analysts point to recent growth in winter racing attendances as a driving factor for expanding dedicated family-oriented broadcast slots.
Shaun Hinds, CEO of Newbury Racecourse, said: “Post-Christmas Racing has always been a popular pastime for UK racing fans but in recent years it has gone through something of a renaissance with significant growth in attendances at all meetings during the festive period.
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At Newbury, our popular Challow meeting has become a family favourite with activities and facilities arranged specifically for a family audience.
This new initiative to create a televised festive festival of racing across the four days will be brilliant for racegoers and ITV viewers alike and at Newbury we are delighted to be staging the finale of this exciting development in the racing calendar.”
Course administrators emphasized that the restructured dates build on previous competitive momentum and dramatic finishes that captured public attention.
