Irish racing bookies return…
It’s hugely exciting to see restrictions lifting for various sectors…
…as the coronavirus vaccination programmes make a dent in the pandemic. Some sectors have had to wait for longer than others, and one particularly hard-hit industry has been the betting and bookmakers industry.
However, there is good news on the horizon, as bookmakers in Ireland have been able to throw open their doors again, and welcome customers back onto the premises with the reopening of non-essential shops and retailers. As a supplier to many national and independent betting shops and bookmakers, Tate know just how hard the industry has been hit, with the loss of income and the uncertain stop-start-stop restrictions that have been in force over the past 15 months. Online betting forums have capitalised on the closure of physical betting shops, and now the battle is on to encourage customers back to the counters.
Irish Bookmakers Association chair Sharon Byrne said: "The impact of online will be profound when the shops reopen. They will have a battle on their hands to bring people back and show the social aspect of how it's a little more enjoyable maybe than betting alone on their phones. It's probably going to be one of the biggest challenges."
Event bookmakers, such as racetrack bookies, are less phased by a potential shift in habits, but are still waiting for their turn to return to normality. The reintroduction of large crowds at sporting events is one of the last hurdles to overcome, and track-side bookies are waiting with bated breath to see which courses are chosen to hold ‘test events’, giving them a window of opportunity to win back some of their catastrophic loses over the last year.
Bookmakers in Ireland have been absent from tracks since the Sunday before the 2020 Cheltenham festival, which was one of the first international sporting events to fall foul of the initial lockdown. When test events are announced, it is hoped that racetrack bookmakers will be allowed to return too, albeit in far smaller numbers.
"As soon as crowds can come back – and depending on whatever size of crowds are allowed in – we're hoping that some bookmakers will be back on a racecourse,” said Irish National Professional Bookmakers Association chairman Ray Mulvaney.
"It would be in small numbers at first. We could go back as three, six or ten depending on crowd sizes, but hopefully our members will get behind us. Everyone understands the importance of getting it right. When we go back our service will be improved. We'll have facilities to use debit cards, Revolut and new software for our machines. The ability to place multiples, whether it be across-the-card doubles or Yankees, our software has been improved and I hope our service will be better."
We wish all our Irish customers good luck as the sector opens up again. You can read more of the original article from racingpost.com below…
Related articles
Ireland's course bookies eye summer comeback as shops prepare for Monday return - racingpost.com