New Zealand racing faces urgent overhaul as deficits deepen

New Zealand racing could run through its cash reserves by the end of the 2027/28 season unless it accepts a sweeping reset that the TAB New Zealand Racing Advisory Committee says is the only path back to growth.

The committee, chaired by Sir Peter Vela, released its report on June 24 and said the industry’s structural deficit is now more than $50 million a year. It described the moment as the industry’s most critical turning point, warning that the current funding guarantee runs out after 2028 and that incremental change will not stop the slide.

The first impact would be felt on the track itself. The report said the thoroughbred foal crop has fallen 22% over the past decade and the standardbred foal crop 44%, while more than 500 thoroughbred breeders have left since 2015. If nothing changes, starter numbers could drop another 18% in thoroughbred racing and 32% in harness racing by 2035, a path that points to thinner fields, more uneven programming and less certainty around major race meetings.

The financial strain is not confined to breeding. The committee said the industry has about $700 million of capital locked in fragmented venue ownership, while annual administrative costs total $91 million. It said up to $20 million of that spending could be redirected to participants and investment, money that would flow more directly into prize money, stabling, training facilities and the day-to-day product that keeps owners and trainers engaged.

Its five recommendations aim to change the structure before the decline becomes permanent: unified governance under a single body for strategy, funding, the calendar and marketing; a strategic property vehicle to rationalise venues and unlock capital; tax changes to stimulate domestic breeding and ownership; a modernised TAB betting system; and shifting the cost of the Racing Integrity Board to the Crown, consistent with other sports.

The committee, which worked with TAB NZ management, external advisers, New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing and Harness Racing New Zealand, said it benchmarked overseas racing jurisdictions and modelled three financial pathways. Only structural reform, it concluded, returned the industry to growth. TAB NZ says direct funding to racing will be more than $225 million in the upcoming season.

The politics around the report sharpened the stakes. Winston Peters said large-scale legislative reform is not the government’s immediate priority and that the industry should show it can act collectively before asking for further change. RNZ reported that New Zealand First has received $300,000 in donations associated with the racing industry so far in 2026, adding another layer of sensitivity to a sport now asking for both money and authority.