GBGB — The Governing Body of Licensed Greyhound Racing in Great Britain

GBGB — the Greyhound Board of Great Britain — is the organisation that regulates, licenses and governs every aspect of professional greyhound racing in the UK. If a track is licensed, a trainer is registered, a dog is graded or a race result is official, GBGB is the body that makes it so. Oxford Stadium operates under GBGB’s authority, as do all 18 licensed tracks in the country.

For most punters, GBGB exists in the background — a logo on the results page, a name on the welfare reports, the source of the grading decisions that determine which dogs run against each other. But the organisation’s role goes much deeper than that. It sets the rules of the sport, enforces welfare standards, manages drug testing, oversees the financial framework and, in 2026, leads the celebration of greyhound racing’s centenary year in Britain. Understanding what GBGB does and how it is structured gives context to the sport that plays out on the track.

What GBGB Does — Licensing, Grading and Rule Enforcement

GBGB’s responsibilities fall into four main categories: licensing, grading, rule enforcement and welfare oversight. Each of these functions directly shapes the racing that takes place at every licensed track in the UK, including Oxford.

Licensing is the foundation. Every track that hosts professional greyhound racing must hold a GBGB licence, which requires compliance with standards covering track safety, kennel facilities, veterinary provision and broadcasting equipment. The UK currently has 18 licensed tracks — a number that has declined steadily from 77 in the 1940s, driven by urban development, changing leisure habits and the economics of maintaining sports venues. Each licensed track is inspected regularly, and licences can be suspended or revoked if standards slip.

Trainer and official licensing is equally important. The UK’s registered greyhound sector includes approximately 500 licensed trainers, around 3,000 kennel staff and some 700 track officials — stipendiary stewards, racing managers, veterinary officers and grading secretaries. GBGB issues and monitors all of these licences, ensuring that the people involved in the sport meet the required competency and ethical standards. A trainer whose dogs fail drug tests, for example, faces sanctions up to and including permanent disqualification.

Grading determines the competitive framework. Every racing greyhound is assigned a grade based on its performance — from A1 (the fastest) through to A10 and beyond, with separate puppy and developmental grades. GBGB sets the grading rules, and individual tracks apply them under GBGB oversight. The system ensures that races are competitive: dogs of similar ability compete against each other, which produces closer finishes and more meaningful form data for punters.

Rule enforcement covers everything from drug testing to race conduct. GBGB employs stipendiary stewards who attend meetings at licensed tracks, adjudicate disputes, investigate irregularities and impose sanctions where necessary. The drug testing programme is comprehensive — random and targeted tests are conducted at meetings across the country, and positive tests result in automatic suspensions for the trainer responsible. The integrity of the sport depends on these enforcement mechanisms, and GBGB invests a significant portion of its budget in maintaining them.

How Greyhound Racing Is Funded — BGRF and the Bookmaker Levy

GBGB’s operations are funded through a combination of the bookmaker levy, track contributions and commercial revenue. The levy mechanism sits at the heart of the financial model and is administered through the British Greyhound Racing Fund (BGRF), a separate entity that collects and distributes the funds.

Bookmakers who offer greyhound betting voluntarily contribute 0.6% of their greyhound turnover to the BGRF. In the 2026–25 financial year, this levy collected £6.75 million. The year before, BGRF reported total income of £7.3 million — a 4% decline from the previous year’s £7.6 million. The direction of travel is clear and concerning: the levy has been falling for years, driven by declining betting turnover on greyhound racing and the shift from betting shops (where the levy is easier to enforce) to online platforms (where participation is less consistent).

To put the current figures in context, the BGRF’s income peaked at over £20 million. The drop to £7.3 million represents a contraction of more than 60%, and it has forced the sport to make difficult choices about where to allocate increasingly scarce resources. Prize money, welfare funding, regulatory costs and track support all compete for the same diminishing pot.

The word “voluntary” is the critical qualifier. Horse racing benefits from a statutory levy — a legally mandated contribution from bookmakers, backed by Acts of Parliament. Greyhound racing has no equivalent. GBGB has lobbied successive governments for a statutory levy, arguing that the voluntary system is fragile and that some bookmakers contribute less than they should. The industry’s position is that a statutory framework would provide the certainty needed to invest in the sport’s long-term future — in track infrastructure, in welfare programmes, in the developmental racing that feeds new greyhounds into the system. Successive governments have acknowledged the argument but declined to legislate, leaving the sport dependent on goodwill that has delivered progressively less money each year.

New Leadership for a Centenary Year

GBGB entered 2026 with a leadership transition. Sir Philip Davies was appointed Chairman in 2026, replacing the previous board leadership at a moment when the sport faces both its greatest celebration and its most serious challenges. Davies brought a public profile — a former Member of Parliament with a background in gambling industry policy — and his appointment signalled GBGB’s intention to strengthen its political voice.

Upon taking the role, Sir Philip Davies expressed that he was honoured to have been appointed Chair, describing licensed greyhound racing as a fantastic sport that has held an important place in the fabric of the country for almost a century. The statement set the tone for a chairmanship that would lean into the centenary narrative, framing greyhound racing as a cultural institution rather than simply a betting product.

The centenary itself — marking 100 years since the first licensed greyhound race at Belle Vue Stadium, Manchester, on 24 July 1926 — provides the backdrop for Davies’s tenure. GBGB has planned a programme of events including a gala dinner at Dunstall Park, a recreation of the first race and an expanded Category One calendar that showcases the sport’s flagship competitions. Oxford’s Sandy Lane Sprint, included in the enhanced 2026 schedule, is part of this programme.

Meanwhile, Mark Bird, who served as GBGB Chief Executive through the most turbulent period in the sport’s modern history — including the Wales ban, the welfare reform programme and the COVID-19 disruption — announced his intention to step down. His departure leaves GBGB searching for a successor at a time when the regulatory, political and financial demands on the governing body have never been greater. The next Chief Executive will inherit a sport with improving welfare metrics, a declining funding base and a political environment that is less certain of greyhound racing’s future than at any point in its hundred-year history.