The state controlled bookmaker, Tote was put up for sale a couple of months ago, and at the time Gala Coral indicated their interest in buying the bookmaker.  They have now confirmed this, after meetings with representatives of the major racecourses across the UK have led to a possible joint-bid in excess of £300 million.

A meeting was held last week involving Gala Coral’s chief executive, Neil Goulden, David Thorpe, chairman of the Racecourse Association (RCA) and Mark Elliot, the chief executive of Arena Leisure which operates seven race tracks including Doncaster, Lingfield and Windsor.

The RCA was keen to keep Tote in racing and was dead against a bookmaker taking control of Tote.  They were part of a racing consortium whose bid to buy Tote was rejected by the government.  They have now discussed a possible agreement with Gala Coral which would see the two parties have joint control over Tote.  It is thought that the race tracks are especially keen on Tote’s exclusive seven year licence to operate pool betting.

A source close to the RCA said, “The courses don’t want to own the Tote outright but they do have a vested interest in the sale.”

Meanwhile Gala Coral are interested in acquiring Tote’s 540 betting shops to add to its already 1,600 strong, betting shops.  The gambling group are keen to boost their profits after seeing big drops in revenue from its casino and bingo operations, largely due to the smoking ban.

Goldman Sachs is auctioning the sale of Tote on behalf of the government.  They have been told to maximise the price of the sale and even accept bids that break up the Tote if necessary.  The government have pledged to plough half of the proceeds of the sale back into racing.

The RCA are, however, concerned about how the money will be distributed to racing.  They are worried they may get less money than the National Stud and racehorse welfare groups.

David Thorpe was tight-lipped about any possible joint-deal as he said, “Since the racing bid was rejected, we have discussed the matter with a number of organisations.  I have no comment to make on any meeting that has taken place.”

With the support of the racecourses, Gala Coral would be more likely to clinch the Tote deal.  They do, however, face stiff competition from other bookmakers.  The auction has yet to begin. 

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