The Hong Kong Jockey Club has reported another record year in the 12 months to 30 June 2023, with total turnover up 5.1% year-on-year to HK$304.8 billion (US$38.9 billion) thanks largely to the improved contribution of both football betting and the Mark Six Lottery.
While racing turnover was flat at HK$140.4 billion (US$17.9 billion), football turnover grew by 9.1% to HK$156.9 billion (US$20.0 billion) and Mark Six by 29.2% to HK$7.56 billion (US$964 million).
This was despite what The HKJC described as a challenging year, with the first seven months dominated by the pandemic and the Club impacted by the post-pandemic economic slowdown. Macro-economic trends, it added, indicate that the business environment will continue to be “very difficult”.
Nevertheless, racing turnover for the 2022.23 racing season – which doesn’t quite line-up with the financial year – grew by 0.5% to HK$141.1 billion (US$18.0 billion) with HKJC earning income on racing wagering of HK$6.4 billion (US$816 million). Although local turnover on Hong Kong racing was down 1.3%, “this was offset by the Club’s successful strategy to widen its customer and revenue base by exporting its world-class racing overseas via commingling.”
As a result, commingling on Hong Kong racing was up 3.0% to HK$25.4 billion (US$3.24 billion), comprising 19.6% of total turnover on Hong Kong racing for the season.
The increase in football betting turnover was partly due to the World Cup as well as the launch of The HKJC’s new customer information and wagering system, which it said facilitated the launch of new In Play bet types to compete with the illegal market. Football income remained flat however at HK$9.8 billion (US$1.25 billion) due to an increase in the Special Football Betting Duty.
With overall turnover up, The HKJC contributed a record HK$35.9 billion (US$4.58 billion) to the community, comprising HK$28.6 billion (US$3.65 billion) in betting duty, profits tax and Lotteries Fund contributions and HK$7.3 billion (US$931 million) in approved charity donations.
“Through resilience and agility, the Club performed extremely well during the pandemic,” said CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges. “However, there is no question that the post-pandemic environment is proving equally challenging, with the economy likely to be highly volatile for some time to come.
“In these circumstances, the Club’s exceptional performance last year was only possible because of its strategy to develop world-class racing and to export it overseas via commingling as well as through the creation of the World Pool. Together with the strong performance of football betting, this enabled the Club to contribute a record HK$35.9 billion to the community.”
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