‘Major concern’ as British and Irish horse trainers ‘forced to pay millions’ to have runners under Donald Trump tariffs
TOP British and Irish horse trainers could be forced to stump up MILLIONS to run their horses under Donald Trump’s new trade tariffs.
Reports claim Trump’s wide-sweeping clampdown could have disastrous consequences on huge meetings such as the Breeders’ Cup.
Held every November, the world championships of racing features a whole host of top British and Irish talent.
Behemoths Godolphin and Coolmore mop up many of the Group 1s but Barnsley boy Mick Appleby has been among the winners in recent years with the likes of Big Evs.
Whether owners will want to flood the top races with their best talent is of ‘major concern’ now, with fees on horses set to cost millions.
Any horse sold in Ireland or France for the equivalent of around £155,000 and exported to the US will be subject to a roughly £30,000 tariff upon import to the States.
But on top of that, owners of overseas-based horses running at the likes of the Breeders’ Cup will have to pay a ‘temporary import bond’, reports claim.
It is believed that will be approximately DOUBLE the import tariff – totalling £80,000.
Under the new rules it means City Of Troy’s Breeders’ Cup Classic tilt last year would have cost owners Coolmore an addition £80,000.
Given Irish-based Coolmore and Godolphin, owned by the billionaire ruler of Dubai who employs Southampton’s Charlie Appleby as his top trainer, have tens of runners each, then they are staring at multi-million pound bills before the horses even compete.
Regina Byrne, manager of the Association of Irish Racehorse Owners told The Irish Field: “Our industry is dependent on owners using their disposable income to run their horses.
“The fear would be that any increases in costs could see a reduction in expenditure on luxury items.
“Traditionally, there has been a very strong demand and market for competitive horses in Irish maidens being sold into America.
“A lot of owners rely on this trade to fund their racing and breeding interests at home.
“This is a major area of concern for us and could have serious implications on our whole industry.”
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