Another record year of achievement and contribution
At its Annual General Meeting on 8 September, the Club announced its results for the financial year ended 30 June 2022. Once again it was another record year for the Club. And once again the Club made sure to pass on the benefits to the community.
Rising to the challenge of the pandemic, the Club raced on, with not a single race meeting lost due to COVID-19. The result was a new turnover record of HK$290 billion, which in turn enabled the Club to return a record HK$33.6 billion to the community.
This included a record HK$27 billion to the HKSAR government in betting and lottery duty, profits tax and Lotteries Fund contributions.
Meanwhile, approved charity donations increased to HK$6.6 billion – the second highest in the Club’s history. They included HK$1.4 billion to fight the pandemic.
Commenting on the Club’s performance, CEO Winfried Engelbrecht-Bresges said, “The Club’s achievement this year, as throughout the pandemic, is the product of its long-term strategic investment in racing, technology and people. Without this we would not have had the resilience to keep racing going, or the means to stay connected with our customers. We also owe an enormous debt of gratitude to our horse Owners, trainers and jockeys, and most especially to our staff. My sincere and deepest thanks to them all.”
Record results
There was good news across all three of the Club’s core businesses, with record results for racing and football.
Racing turnover was up 3.1% to HK$140.4 billion, with racing betting duty returned to the HKSAR government up 2.9% to HK$14.1 billion.
Making a vital contribution was commingling, through which overseas fans wager on Hong Kong’s world-class racing. At HK$25.7 billion, commingling contributed 18.3% of racing turnover for the season.
Football betting also saw a very positive performance, with turnover up 2.6% to HK$143.8 billion and football betting duty up 6.5% to HK$9.8 billion – both exceeding last year’s record figures. This was largely due to the Club’s wellmanaged trading operations, with higher margins achieved.
With many Mark Six customers migrating to digital channels, it was viable to hold more Mark Six draws this year. As a result, Mark Six turnover was up 72.6% to HK$5.8 billion, generating lottery duty and Lotteries Fund contributions of HK$2.4 billion.
25th Anniversary of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region
This was an important year for Hong Kong as it celebrated 25 years since the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.
The Club marked the occasion with the 25th Anniversary Hong Kong Reunification Raceday on 1 July. It also donated HK$630 million to the HKSAR government in support of more than 60 community events.
A special highlight was the opening of the Hong Kong Palace Museum; its construction made possible by a HK$3.5 billion donation from the Club – its largest single donation to date.
Building stronger communities together
Throughout the year, the Club has worked hard to fight the pandemic. Of HK$6.6 billion in approved donations, HK$1.4 billion was to address its impact.
In total, since February 2020, the Club’s Charities Trust has approved over HK$2.9 billion in pandemic-related donations. Funds have been allocated to meet emergency needs as well as to build long-term community resilience.
Equally important, the Club’s regular donations remained unchanged at HK$4.5 billion, ensuring that its ongoing commitment to the community was fully maintained. In total, 292 charities and community projects benefited.
The Club’s 2021/22 Annual Report is now available. Click here to view the digital version.