Coral Ends Cheltenham Festival Sponsorship Ahead of Tax Increases

Coral has ended its sponsorship of the Cheltenham Festival, referencing upcoming tax increases as part of its reasoning for concluding its sponsorship of the Coral Cup.

The Entain-owned brand has sponsored the race since its inception in 1993, and Coral has been a sponsor at the Cheltenham Festival since 1974.

This year’s Cheltenham Festival runs from Tuesday, 10 March to Friday, 13 March. This will be the first Cheltenham Festival that could portray the impact of upcoming online gambling tax increases in the UK.

What are the tax increases?

In the November Budget, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced that from April 1, 2026, remote gaming duty, paid on online casino bets, will increase to 40% of gross profit from 21%.

This will be followed by a rise in general betting duty, paid on online sports betting, to 25% of gross profit from 15% on April 1, 2027; bets on horseracing will be exempt from this increase.

Despite horseracing’s exemption, it has been widely believed that horseracing will still feel the impact from the tax rises, as operators will be forced to cut marketing spend.

Entain’s decision to end its sponsorship of the Coral Cup, and of the Cheltenham Festival as a whole, is the most significant sign of this happening so far.

“We must make difficult decisions”

Simon Clare, Entain’s UK PR and Sponsorship Director, said:

“It is with a heavy heart that I confirm Coral will not be renewing its long-standing sponsorship of the Coral Cup. Coral has proudly been the longest-running sponsor at the Cheltenham Festival since 1974, but the scale of the recent tax increase on betting operators means we must take difficult decisions to mitigate its impact.

“Ending our sponsorship after 52 years is incredibly regrettable, but reflects the need to reassess where and how we invest under the new cost landscape. The Jockey Club remains a valued and long-standing partner, and we look forward to continuing our collaboration across the many major Coral and Ladbrokes sponsorships we continue to support.”

Entain’s other horseracing deals

Entain is not yet withdrawing its sponsorships of horseracing events entirely. Its brands remain the sponsor of the Ladbrokes King George VI Chase, which takes place at Kempton Park on Boxing Day, and the Coral-Eclipse Stakes; a race which has been sponsored by Coral since 1976 and is held at Sandown Park in early July.

Ladbrokes’ King George VI Chase deal is part of a sponsorship of Kempton’s Christmas Festival, which runs to 2027. Last May, Coral announced it had extended its sponsorship of the Coral-Eclipse Stakes for a further five years up to and including 2030. This was six months prior to the announcement of the tax increases.

Cuts to marketing spend

After Reeves announced the planned tax increases in November, several of the UK’s leading operators announced how they could be impacted. Flutter Entertainment, owner of Paddy Power and Sky Bet, expects the increases will cost the company approximately $320 million (£241.9 million) in fiscal 2026 and $540 million (£408.1 million) in fiscal 2027.

William Hill owner Evoke said its duty costs will increase by £125 million to £135 million per year after the tax rises are fully implemented, with about £80 million of the pre-mitigation impact arising in FY26. Meanwhile, Entain forecast the changes will cost the company £200 million per year before mitigations are taken into account.

Entain said at the time that approximately 25% of the impact can be mitigated by reducing marketing and promotions as soon as the tax changes are implemented. Entain’s decision to end its sponsorship of the Coral Cup is one of the first clear signs of this reduction in marketing spend being put into practice.