Race Coast Incentives for the 2025/6 Season Explained
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Race Coast Incentives for the 2025/6 Season Explained
1 week 3 days ago
Stakeholders racing in the Cape and KZN can look forward to enhanced Race Coast incentives, powered by Hollywoodbets, in the new season, after over R25 million was paid to owners, trainers and jockeys last term.
While the KZN portion of the Race Coast Incentive, amounting to R9 632 500, was only paid for the final seven months of last season, incentives of R12 222 000 were paid to owners in the Cape, with R2,7 million to trainers and an additional R817 625 paid out to jockeys in the region last season. The launch of South Africa’s new age coastal racing operator, spawned from the merger of Gold Circle’s operations in KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape-based Cape Racing, at the end of May signalled the arrival of a vibrant new force in South African horse racing, with the innovative Race Coast Incentive Scheme a key driver in bold plans to rebuild and reignite a passion for the sport, while attracting a new and diverse audience.
Looking ahead, incentives have now been standardized over the two Race Coast regions, with an amount of R38 475 000 budgeted to be paid to stakeholders during the period 1 September 2025 to 31 July 2026.
Race Coast Executive Justin Vermaak told the Sporting Post that the Race Coast Incentive Scheme had been streamlined over the past three years and had ‘unquestionably worked’ in achieving some of the goals set, while remaining a ‘work-in-progress’.
“We set out with the aim of boosting racehorse ownership and achieving enhanced field sizes, which naturally provides the knock-on vital lifeblood of increased betting turnovers. In 2022, the Cape had fallen to sixty race meetings for the season while managing a paltry 8,86 runners a race. The completion of the 2024/25 season saw the region complete 67 race meetings with 10,17 runners per race. This is solid growth, despite the national trend of reduced meetings. This provides further opportunities for our local racing communities, and increased employment prospects for grooms and work riders, as well as raising the bar for all related and ancillary horse racing services. We have exciting times ahead with KZN now under the umbrella,” said Vermaak.
On the season-to-season changes being implemented, Vermaak said that logistical considerations and stakeholder consultation had resulted in ‘tweaks’ while also striving to keep incentives uniform and simple to understand
“Historically, we have not paid appearance fees to the first and last placed horses. This changes in 25/26 as we now do not pay the winner and runner-up, and the last-place horse gets paid. We have also not paid the trainer and jockey of the first and last-placed horses their respective fees. That changes this season to only the winning trainer and jockey not receiving their fees. The appearance fee payable to owners will be R2 500, the trainer will earn a R700 saddling fee, and the jockeys R250 extra per ride. This will be standard across both Race Coast regions,” he added, while also confirming that the team are thrilled to announce the extension of the ‘raiders bonus’ incentive for the Cape Summer Season.
“Historically, owners and trainers of winners during the Summer have been rewarded with added bonuses in line with having won at a standard Summer meeting, or at a Festival meeting. This has been a great hit with our visitors, and we expect to welcome them again this season” concluded Vermaak.
RCIS 25/26 Incentive Summary:
R2 500 a runner (Owner)
While the KZN portion of the Race Coast Incentive, amounting to R9 632 500, was only paid for the final seven months of last season, incentives of R12 222 000 were paid to owners in the Cape, with R2,7 million to trainers and an additional R817 625 paid out to jockeys in the region last season. The launch of South Africa’s new age coastal racing operator, spawned from the merger of Gold Circle’s operations in KwaZulu-Natal and the Western Cape-based Cape Racing, at the end of May signalled the arrival of a vibrant new force in South African horse racing, with the innovative Race Coast Incentive Scheme a key driver in bold plans to rebuild and reignite a passion for the sport, while attracting a new and diverse audience.
Looking ahead, incentives have now been standardized over the two Race Coast regions, with an amount of R38 475 000 budgeted to be paid to stakeholders during the period 1 September 2025 to 31 July 2026.
Race Coast Executive Justin Vermaak told the Sporting Post that the Race Coast Incentive Scheme had been streamlined over the past three years and had ‘unquestionably worked’ in achieving some of the goals set, while remaining a ‘work-in-progress’.
“We set out with the aim of boosting racehorse ownership and achieving enhanced field sizes, which naturally provides the knock-on vital lifeblood of increased betting turnovers. In 2022, the Cape had fallen to sixty race meetings for the season while managing a paltry 8,86 runners a race. The completion of the 2024/25 season saw the region complete 67 race meetings with 10,17 runners per race. This is solid growth, despite the national trend of reduced meetings. This provides further opportunities for our local racing communities, and increased employment prospects for grooms and work riders, as well as raising the bar for all related and ancillary horse racing services. We have exciting times ahead with KZN now under the umbrella,” said Vermaak.
On the season-to-season changes being implemented, Vermaak said that logistical considerations and stakeholder consultation had resulted in ‘tweaks’ while also striving to keep incentives uniform and simple to understand
“Historically, we have not paid appearance fees to the first and last placed horses. This changes in 25/26 as we now do not pay the winner and runner-up, and the last-place horse gets paid. We have also not paid the trainer and jockey of the first and last-placed horses their respective fees. That changes this season to only the winning trainer and jockey not receiving their fees. The appearance fee payable to owners will be R2 500, the trainer will earn a R700 saddling fee, and the jockeys R250 extra per ride. This will be standard across both Race Coast regions,” he added, while also confirming that the team are thrilled to announce the extension of the ‘raiders bonus’ incentive for the Cape Summer Season.
“Historically, owners and trainers of winners during the Summer have been rewarded with added bonuses in line with having won at a standard Summer meeting, or at a Festival meeting. This has been a great hit with our visitors, and we expect to welcome them again this season” concluded Vermaak.
RCIS 25/26 Incentive Summary:
R2 500 a runner (Owner)
- R700 a runner (Trainer)
- R250 a runner (Jockey)
- R10 000 a winner (Owner) at any meeting during the Cape Summer Season (1 Nov- 28 Feb)
- R10 000 a winner (Trainer) at any meeting during the Cape Summer Season (1 Nov – 28 Feb)
- R50 000 a winner (Owner) at any Festival meeting during the Cape Summer Season (Not payable in races with a gross stake of R500 000 and higher)
- R50 000 a winner (Trainer) at any Festival meeting during the Cape Summer Season
- Free seasonal stable rental for raiding horses
- Healthy transport rebates once meeting racing criteria
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