The French government has appointed French MP Eric Woerth to direct the reform of Pari-Mutuel Urbain (PMU), governance and financing model in order to revamp the group’s fortunes.

The news follows a recent report by the French Financial Inspectorate (IGF) that called for a reduction in the revenues that are paid to the group’s stakeholders and for those entities to cut costs, find synergies and further ways to generate additional non-betting revenues.

Woerth is a long-standing MP who is highly knowledgeable about the sector, he was the Minister in charge of France’s regulation of its online gaming and betting industry in 2010. He will direct the project, called ‘Pacte PMU 2030’, that will see the group become a fully commercial entity that can use its cash reserves as it sees fit, access debt markets and not be required to pay all of its net profit to its parent companies SETF (France’s trotting body) and France Galop. One financial source told AFP that the measure will give PMU “greater strategic autonomy” and “strengthen the company and its profitability”.

France Galop announced a cost cutting plan in May that will see it reduce costs by €20m by 2029 and from next year it will reduce payments it makes to breeders, trainers and stables by €20m, having already reduced those payouts by €10m this year. France’s horse racing sector employs around 40,000 people and is viewed as a national asset, but in common with other mature markets, the sport is struggling to attract new and younger punters.

To revive its fortunes and diversify its revenue streams to include larger contributions from fixed odds OSB, PMU has selected Playtech as its new iGaming platform provider, but the group is also searching for a new CEO as Emmanuelle Malecaze-Doublet is set to leave her post next month after three years at the helm. Recent relations between the company and SETF have been marked by disagreement and public criticism, with SETF refusing to sign off the company accounts and briefing against senior PMU leaders.    

PMU operates a 75% pay out ratio, France Galop and SETF receive 8% of all horse racing stakes and the French state 9%. In 2024 the group recorded stakes of €6.6bn and GGR of €1.7bn, a 2% drop on 2023, although net revenues were up 2%.

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