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British Horseracing Authority warns illegal betting traffic remains high in UK
A horseracing industry study found 19.4 visits to illegal sites for every 100 visits to legal sites in the first seven months of 2026.
The British Horseracing Authority has warned that traffic to illegal betting sites remains high in the United Kingdom, citing a study by the International Federation of Horseracing Authorities.
The study found roughly 19.4 visits to illegal sites for every 100 visits to legal sites during the first seven months of 2026, GamblingNews.com reported. The federation's Council on Anti-Illegal Betting and Related Crime examined 300 popular UK betting websites.
A separate analysis of 32 unlicensed websites found 6.8 visits from UK players for every 100 visits to licensed sites. That was roughly seven times the 0.97 rate recorded in late 2021, according to the report.
The study also found that monthly unique visits to unlicensed sites rose from 1.8 million in 2022 to 25+ million in 2025. It associated use of illegal operators with longer play sessions.
The BHA acknowledged efforts to curb illegal gambling, including a new task force. The UK Gambling Commission has issued over 3,100 cease-and-desist or disruption notices and removed 288,000 URLs since 2024, according to GamblingNews.com.
The authority argued that regulatory and tax measures have weakened licensed operators' ability to compete. It said live event betting and online racing turnover have fallen as a result.
BHA CEO Brant Dunshea said the authority would share the findings with the government and seek action to keep bettors in the regulated market. He also urged the DCMS task force to intensify its work and said he looked forward to working with new gambling minister Vicky Foxcroft.
The BHA called for cooperation among government, industry, technology companies and payment providers. The federation said progress should be judged by a sustained fall in illegal traffic rather than the number of notices issued or URLs removed.