The Magic Agency supplies state of the art Race Nights for Fund-raising or Corporate Hospitality, in Scotland.

A Race Night is one of the most effective ways to raise money for your favourite charity or good cause.

Even after deducting the operator's fee, a well-run Race Night, with a hundred people at it, should raise about £1000.

Corporate Hospitality

You don't charge the guests. Every guest is given some fun money at the start of the evening. They then use the fun money to bet on horses.

At the end of the evening, the guest (or guests) with the most fun-money, wins a prize.

Fund-Raising

Race Nights are a great way of raising money for your favourite charity or good cause. An average Race Night with a hundred people at it will give you a profit of about £1000.

Here's how it works.

Remember - this is just based on one race - you will be having six races (or more, if you wish) during the evening .

You get people to become the owners of each horse in each race. They pay £2-£5 pounds to own a horse and call it a name. If the horse they own wins a race, they get a prize like a bottle of whisky.

If you sell 36 horses at £5 each, then that makes £180. Deduct £60 for six bottles of whisky as the prizes and that leaves you £120 profit even before the Race Night begins.

All bets set at £1 each. There are eight horses in each race. People can bet on any horse - but lets say the betting goes like this...

Horse 1 10 people bet on it = £10.00
Horse 2 16 people bet on it = £16.00
Horse 3 14 people bets on it = £14.00
Horse 4 8 people bet on it = £8.00
Horse 5 12 people bet on it = £12.00
Horse 6 6 people bet on it = £6.00
Horse 7 24 people bet on it = £24.00
Horse 8 10 people bet on it = £10.00

50% £50 is taken for the charity - this is your profit
50% £50 is the prize pot - this will be returned to the winners of the race.

Horse 1 pays £5.00 to each winner
Horse 2 pays £3.00 to each wnner
Horse 3 pays £3.00 to each winner
Horse 4 pays £6.00 to each winner
Horse 5 pays £4.00 to each winner
Horse 6 pays £8.00 to each winner - Outsider
Horse 7 pays £2.00 to each winner - Favourite
Horse 8 pays £5.00 to each winner

So, for example, if horse 4 wins the race £6.00 per bet is paid to everyone who placed bets on it.

8 bets at £6.00 per bet is paid out = £48.00. Profit on the race for the charity is £52.00 i.e. the £100 you took in for the race less £48 paid to the winners.

The computer betting system will keep track of all of the bets placed and work out the tote in this way for each race.

The percentage pay out to the punters can be set for each race to your specifications.

Organising a Typical Race Night

The jobs for the event organisers before the event are, firstly to organise prizes for each of the winning owners in the races.

The next job is to sell off eight horses in each race (except the final race which will be the auction race). If you get the prizes before you sell the horses you can use the quality of the prizes to determine how much you can charge for the horses.

Example: If you get a bottle of spirits for each race worth around £10 you can sell each horse for between £2 and £5. A more expensive prize may justify a higher price tag on the horses.

Whilst the horses are selling you can be considering organising/getting prizes for other games and fund raising opportunities which will be available to you on the night. Full details of these will be supplied in your race night pack which will be sent to you on booking.

Advertise and sell tickets, your crowd will ultimately determine the success of the night.

You will need to organise bookies who will sell the bets to your guests. Your bookies should have the following skills: be able to use a mouse on a computer and be able to deal with money i.e. give change.

You will be required to organise the selling of stand up bingo tickets and collecting money from auction winners.

More Fun and Fund-raising ideas

Be sure to visit our Casino Nights and Texas Hold'em Nights pages for more exciting ideas for corporate entertainment and fund-raising.

Some Testimonials

"Hi Michael,
Please pass on my thanks to David for a great evening last week. All the staff had a great night." - Lorien Resourcing, May, 2008

"The guy who came along did a fantastic job and the audience were very impressed with the whole set up! We will definetely use them again next year. We managed to raise over £900 for club funds! Thanks once again." - Gregg, Social Convenor, Clarkston Bowling and Tennis Club, 2007

"Michael,
Just a quick email to pass on my thanks for supplying the Race Night operators and also to Dave who hosted and ran a slick event. All, without question, thoroughly enjoyed themselves and it can only be described as yet another success for the Magic Agency. Once again thank you." - Graeme Lungley, C1, Efficiency Development Officer, Civil Secretariat, HQ 2 Div, 2006

The Law Pertaining to Race Nights

This is taken from the Department for Culture Media & Sport Factsheet pertaining to Race Nights.

"Definition of a race night

Race nights are events in which participants stake money on the outcome of recorded races and where the selection is totally dependent on chance and where no "odds" or "form" are available to assist the selection.

Proceeds go to purposes of the organisation or a charitable purpose but are not for private gain or commercial purposes.

How to run a race night

It is usual to run a race night as an amusement with prizes under section 15 of the Lotteries and Amusement Act 1976.

The race night must not be the sole attraction and must be part of an exempt entertainment such as a bazaar, sales of work, fete, dinner dance, sporting events or similar gatherings.

There are certain conditions set out in section 15, which must be observed when promoting and conducting a race night as an 'amusement with prizes at an exempt entertainment'. These are listed below.

The race night must not be the only, or only substantial, inducements to persons to attend the entertainment.
The whole proceeds of the entertainment, after deducting the expenses of the entertainment, must be devoted to purposes other than private gain.
The hire of any machinery to run the race night can be defrayed from the proceeds but not if it is made in some way dependent upon the extent to which the equipment is used. For instance profit sharing arrangements between equipment manufactures, hirers and promoters would not be allowed.

Registration requirements

There are no registration requirements.

NB. DCMS cannot give authoritative legal advice about every possibility in this area. We strongly advise any individual or company seeking to set up these or any other types of Fundraising events to seek independent legal advice."

For more information please go to www.culture.gov.uk

Race Nights in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Scotland