Horse racing syndicates are seen to be the future ownership module of the sport, and due to their ever-growing presence, they are getting even more popular among prospective owners. Being a part of a syndicate gives you the opportunity to visit your horse at the stables, visit various other social events with like-minded owners, receive owners’ badges to the horse race, as well as receive a percentage of any prize money won should you be lucky enough to be a part of a winning horse.

Why Is A Syndicate Better Than Outright Ownership  

• Apart from the purchase price to get involved with the horse, there will be no added costs or financial requirements throughout the syndicate term

• Shares can start as little as £25 all the way to £5000 plus, and dependant of the share percentage will depend on the costs and how much of the winning prize money you get at the end of the syndicate term

• The share price that you pay will cover the training fees, vet fees, entries for your horse, the travel to and from the races for your horse during the syndicate term

• The syndicate terms tend to be a year-long, so once the year is up, you get the chance to renew your shares or maybe move into another horse. You can even renew your shares and get involved in other horses within the syndicate.

How Racing Syndicates Work 

Getting involved in a Syndicate is extremely simple - you pay an upfront fee (different syndicates offer different prices) with no other expenses spared, and you are involved. A syndicate like Racing Club offers shares from as little as £25, offering extremely good value for horse racing ownership. All the usual monthly fees, such as training, vets bills, travel and horse food, are all covered within that set fee.

Other Syndicates might require a more expensive up-front fee depending on what sort of percentage you are looking for. For example a 5% share might cost you £1000 up-front, with then a monthly payment for training fees of around £100. The up-front fee is for the cost of the horse, and the reason they may differ is because of the initial fee paid by the syndicate for the horse. Therefore, the more expensive the horse might be, the higher the up-front cost, and sometimes monthly fees; however, these are usually similar in terms of costs.

Even if that option does seem a little costly, you have to take into consideration that if you were to try racehorse ownership outright by yourself, you would have to pay for the horse itself, training fees, vet bills, food bills and even travel bills. You only ever tend to really make two differing payments (up-front and monthly fees), whereas you might get 5 to 6 bills if the horse was yours outright. 

As well as offering micro-share syndicates, Racing Club also offer VIP Syndicates, starting from £5,000. Perks in the VIP Syndicates include guaranteed owner badges, plus unlimited stable visits to see your horse. 

Structure & Operations

As we all know, racehorse ownership can be costly, but it can also be a touch stressful trying to organise bills and the horse's plans. However, when you join a syndicate, that will all be done for you via the Syndicate manager. Although you will be a part of the ownership with the horse, the plans and races tend to be thought out by the syndicate manager and trainer themselves. This is purely because the trainers are the people who get to see the horses daily, therefore they know what conditions or races will suit the horse best. Also, this way it takes that added stress off you, as you can look forward to enjoying a nice day out or two during the syndicate period.

Most of the time, the regular stable and horse updates will be done via group chats or emails. However, the most popular form of communication these days does tend to be WhatsApp. It makes it much easier to send pictures and videos directly from the trainer to yourselves, the owners, in the specified group chat, so they are always there for you to go back on should you need to do so.

The Syndicate members (anyone who takes out the shares) will receive a share of the prize money at the end of the syndicate term should the horse have earned any. The amount of prize money you receive will all depend on the share size you take out. However, this will once again be done in-house via the syndicate manager. 

Advantages + Disadvantages Of Joining A Syndicate

Advantages

• The main advantage is cost, as you can become a racehorse owner at just a fraction of the cost of outright racehorse ownership

• Plenty of perks and incentives to join, such as free merchandise or gifts if you take out a share, social events and yard visits where you get to meet like-minded owners, and to see the yards other horses

• Prize money at the end of the syndicate term 

• New acquaintances can be made with the other respective owners via group chats 

• Many days out with other owners, who are like-minded racing fans       

• Certain syndicates, such as Racing Club, offer exclusive perks, such as the chance to attend events at various venues in their hospitality boxes. 

Disadvantages

• Horses aren't machines, so they won't win every run (unless you are very lucky) sometimes they won’t run up to their best so you have to be patient with them

• Although an advantage could be getting a share of prize money at the end of the syndicate term, it might not be much at all, if anything, it all depends on how your horse runs in its races

• Not every horse is going to be a real superstar, they might only be running in the poorer class of race. However, the days out are still the same

• Injuries can happen with horses, so that might mean retirement or time off the track. It is worth noting that they will be cared for immensely by the trainer and the team. 

Conclusion

Syndicates are a vital part of racing at the moment, and although not all of them go well in terms of with their horses, they still render incredible days out with like minded individuals. It is just a fraction of the costs then if you were to outright own a racehorse, meaning it is more cost effective for anyone looking to dip their toe into the sport. Syndicates are forever growing and will play a massive part in getting the next generation into the sport.   

If you are looking for a syndicate, we can highly recommend Racing Club, who offer shares in horses from just £25 and offering some fantastic perks for shareholders, including the opportunity to attend events in their various hospitality boxes across the country.