The company officially launched in March by Rob Hartnett, former Managing Director of Betdaq, and previously of the Tote, confirmed that it intends to launch an offshore pool betting business without the agreement of the Tote.
The Tote, which has a monopoly on pool betting on British horseracing, has declined to license Race-Os proposed Superbet.
“Our background is British to the core and the motivation is to benefit British racing. We would love to be based in Britain but we are prevented by the fact that the Tote has a monopoly, so we will launch offshore. We have to play the cards we have been dealt,” said Hartnett.
“The world is a very big place and the notion of on and offshore is now considerably less important than it was five or six years ago.”
Hartnett continued that Race-O is currently examining the legal restrictions on promoting its products in the UK from an un-identified offshore location.
“In every other country in the world, pool betting is the dominant form of betting. In Britain it is only a tiny percentage.”
“I believe we can expand and grow that. Winning a large amount for a small stake has greater appeal than has been exploited. Our two aims are, first, to produce more revenue for racing and, second, to make British racing more accessible. It is about revenue and education.”
