# Black market bookies to take £500m in bets during National Hunt season

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/black-market-bookies-to-take-500m-in-bets-during-national-hunt-season/
- Published: 2026-11-12T15:40:12+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-12T16:39:13+00:00
- Original publisher: City AM (publisher lean: Right)
- Original article: https://www.cityam.com/black-market-bookies-to-take-500m-in-bets-during-national-hunt-season/
- Topics: Business, Entertainment, Gaming, TV, UK, World

## Key points

- Black market bookies could take £500m in National Hunt season bets.
- Cheltenham’s November Meeting is forecast to generate £10m for them.
- Unlicensed operators lack safeguards required of UK-licensed bookmakers.

## Summary

The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC) says unlicensed bookmakers are expected to take £500 million in bets during the National Hunt season, including £10 million at this weekend’s Cheltenham November Meeting. It warns that gambling through these operators brings no contribution to British racing or UK tax revenues and lacks the protections required of licensed firms.

Research by H2 Gambling Capital puts bets with unlicensed operators at £17 billion across 2026. UK-licensed bookmakers must carry out age and anti-money-laundering checks and provide safer-gambling measures; the article says unlicensed platforms are not bound by those requirements and account for almost half of UK gambling advertising spend, according to the World Advertising Research Centre. The three-day Cheltenham meeting is part of a season that also includes the King George VI Chase, the Grand National and Cheltenham’s March Festival.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.