As part of the partnership, the Grand Prix, which is planned to be held in December in Korea, will be simulcast in both countries. (image: Kobizmedia/Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Oct. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — Now French gamblers can throw their money into thrilling horse racing competitions held in South Korea.
The Korea Racing Authority (KRA) announced on October 16 that it signed an agreement with France Galop to run a pilot project to broadcast Korean horse races and operate totalizator services in France following Singapore.
As part of the partnership, the Grand Prix, which is planned to be held in December in Korea, will be simulcast in both countries. The state-run company is expected to secure a portion of sales income from the telecast. After the pilot contract, both parties plan to sign another official agreement, which is expected to hit the record of 580-billion-won, or about US$546-million, sales and 17-billion-won commissions.
“As we did in Singapore, the official contract will be negotiated after the success of the pilot program. Export to Singapore has already proved that Korea’s horse races have had global appeal. Therefore, 30 races in 2015 and 150 competitions in 2016 are expected to be broadcast in France,” said an official in the corporation.
KRA expects that the agreement with the French firm will play a role as a stepping stone to enter the European market, the home of horse races. The pilot operation is also expected to build a bridge to other adjacent European countries including Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Belgium as they work in a regional community called the European Union and therefore interact freely with each other in many industries including horse racing.
The state-owned enterprise expects to earn up to 3 billion won within three years in Singapore. It has a plan to export its competitions to other nations such as the U.S. and Australia next year.
By Veronica Huh (veronicah@koreabizwire.com)
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