Summary
The Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) announced its Category One and Two schedules for 2026 on 5 December 2025, with eleven races worth £20,000 or more to the winner. [4] [5] Greyhound Racing Ireland (GRI) released its Classics and Features calendar towards the end of 2025, with eleven races worth over €20,000 or more to the winner. [6]
At the annual British greyhound of the year awards Proper Heiress won the 2025 greyhound of the year for champion trainer Mark Wallis. [7] Mongys Wild also trained by Wallis won two awards (stayer and marathon performer of the year) [7] and subsequently won the first £20,000 Category One race of the year after winning the Golden Jacket. [8] Mongys Wild (a white and fawn dog) had already won the former classic event the ARC Cesarewitch in January at Central Park. [9]
Amendments to the Rules of Racing introduced by the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB) came into effect in Great Britain on 1 January 2026, including new requirements on licensing information, greyhound retirement and injury policies at racecourses, and the publication of withdrawal reasons. [10]
On 26 January 2026, Greyhound Racing Ireland (GRI) told the Irish Government in a pre-budget submission that rising welfare, veterinary and rehoming costs were placing increasing financial pressure on trainers and owners despite a recovery in attendance and commercial income. It said higher feed, transport and veterinary expenses were threatening the commercial viability of some participants and suggested that the Department of Agriculture could provide support through direct funding or VAT reductions. It also said that rehoming retired racing greyhounds had become increasingly difficult, with the number of dogs rehomed falling from 2,234 in 2021 to 1,100 in 2024. [11]
On 28 January 2026, amendments to the Prohibition of Greyhound Racing (Wales) Bill were considered during Stage 2 proceedings in the Senedd. The bill, which would make it an offence to operate a greyhound racing stadium or organise greyhound racing in Wales, had previously been approved in principle by the Senedd in December 2025 and is now at Stage 3 of the legislative process, where MSs may table further amendments for debate and voting in plenary. [12] Stage 3 proceedings were scheduled to be debated in the Senedd on 10 March 2026. [13]
On 29 January 2026, the Scottish Parliament voted 69–27 at Stage 1 in favour of the Greyhound Racing (Offences) (Scotland) Bill, introduced by MSP Mark Ruskell, which proposes banning greyhound racing in Scotland. [14] During the debate, Minister for Agriculture Jim Fairlie said the bill would prevent racing from resuming at the Thornton track and that the Scottish Government supported the legislation because racing greyhounds on oval tracks involved inherent welfare risks that could not be eliminated through licensing or good practice. [15] The GBGB opposed the bill and criticised the proposal following the vote. [16]
On 5 February 2026, the Oireachtas Committee of Public Accounts was told that €19 million from the Horse and Greyhound Racing Fund had been issued to GRI in 2024. [17]
On 18 February 2026, the Greyhound Racing (Offences) (Scotland) Bill completed Stage 2 scrutiny in the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee, where amendments were considered before the bill proceeded to Stage 3. No amendments were lodged at Stage 3 and the final debate and vote on whether to pass the bill were scheduled for 12 March 2026 in the Scottish Parliament. [18]
This page is based on this
Wikipedia article Text is available under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.