Students aged 18 to 25 years-old will now be able to go racing for just £10, including a drink and a bet, thanks to a major new initiative launched by Jockey Club Racecourses to make it more affordable for student racing fans to enjoy the sport and to help to attract the next generation. The launch of ‘The Racing Union’ allows students to take advantage of the high quality Christmas fixtures across the country as well as numerous race days in 2016.
Britain's two million plus students all qualify for the offer available all-year-round at more than 300 race meetings hosted by The Jockey Club's 15 racecourses across the country, including Aintree, Cheltenham, Epsom Downs and the two in Newmarket.
Students need only visit the dedicated website www.TheRacingUnion.co.uk to register and book their trip in advance. The £10 offer is available for all fixtures staged at Jockey Club Racecourses with the only exceptions being its music nights, the Cheltenham Festival, the Crabbie's Grand National and Investec Derby Day.
In the process students will be supporting an important part of British culture, as every penny of profit The Jockey Club makes it reinvests into new and enhanced facilities for customers, and prize money to support the livelihoods of those working in the sport.
Paul Fisher, Group Managing Director of Jockey Club Racecourses, said:
"The Racing Union is an invitation to students across the UK to come and enjoy some cracking sport as part of a great social experience at top racecourses all over the country. We think we're offering real value at £10 for entry, a drink and a bet, and perhaps many of the next generation of racing fans will catch the bug this way."
More than 6 million people are expected to enjoy a day at the races during 2015 along with more than 40 percent of TV viewers tuning into the sport at some point during the year.
This coming week at Jockey Club Racecourses will see Grade 1 action in the South West of England at The International at Cheltenham, where The Racing Union will have a race named after it; the following weeks will see high quality fixtures at Kempton in the South and Haydock in the North which are all part of The Racing Union offer.
Each Jockey Club Racecourse helps to demystify racing for racegoers who are not experts through the group's Racing Explained initiative. This includes showing short explainer films on big and small screens at courses and available to view online, offering an app for Apple and Android devices designed to enhance a visit to the races, and the microsite www.RacingExplained.co.uk that includes the option to look up racing terms and phrases.
