The winners, the losers and the stories behind the SERPs.
Welcome to Receptional’s Horse Racing Power Rankings — our monthly analysis of who’s climbing, who’s sliding, and what it means for operators fighting for player acquisition in search.
We track 396 of the most competitive keywords every month — the terms that matter most for acquisition. No brand searches – just real intent.
And September brought significant movement across the field.
Headline Story: BBC’s Stunning Surge, GG’s Dramatic Collapse
This month, BBC stormed the field with a 74% surge in traffic, climbing from 102,397 to 177,935 searches — particularly dominating in results-based searches with key wins for “horse racing results” (#3→#2) and “horse racing” (#6→#2).
Meanwhile, GG’s endured the month’s most dramatic collapse — down 98% — virtually disappearing from search visibility with a crushing drop from 6,372 to just 162 searches. That swing alone represents an estimated £429,000 in lost traffic value.
The Winners Circle
- BBC: +75,538 searches gained
- Key win: “horse racing results” (#3→#2)
- At The Races: +12,090 searches gained
- Key win: Maintained dominance in tips category
- Paddy Power: +9,974 searches gained
- Key win: Leading betting category with 28% growth
Under Pressure
- Sporting Life: -35,427 searches lost
- Key loss: “horse racing results” (#2→#3)
- Racing TV: -23,538 searches lost
- Key loss: 23% traffic decline across the board
- Racing Post: -18,777 searches lost
- Key loss: General racing category down 23%
The League Table (Top 10 Overall Traffic)
Rank | Brand | Traffic | Commercial Traffic | Traffic Value |
1 | Sporting Life | 647,747 | 6,938 | £480,000 |
2 | Racing Post | 192,611 | 8,298 | £573,000 |
3 | BBC | 177,935 | 0 | £0 |
4 | At The Races | 141,565 | 19,470 | £1,343,000 |
5 | Racing TV | 78,108 | 406 | £28,000 |
6 | Timeform | 46,814 | 1,319 | £91,000 |
7 | Paddy Power | 45,240 | 11,206 | £773,000 |
8 | Sky Sports | 40,243 | 19 | £1,300 |
9 | My Racing | 27,593 | 4,181 | £288,000 |
10 | Horse Racing.net | 25,599 | 2,744 | £189,000 |
Who Owns What in Horse Racing Land?
Results Category
The most valuable territory in horse racing search
- Sporting Life — 332,386 searches (-14%)
- BBC — 121,956 searches (+58%)
- Racing Post — 52,061 searches (-14%)
Under pressure: Sporting Life — 332,386 searches (-55,063 lost)
Tips & Predictions
Where punters seek their edge
- At The Races — 40,079 searches (+14%)
- Sporting Life — 24,761 searches (+7%)
- My Racing — 23,050 searches (-11%)
Under pressure: My Racing — 23,050 searches (-2,744 lost)
Betting & Odds
Commercial intent keywords driving conversions
- Paddy Power — 10,656 searches (+9%)
- Oddschecker — 9,510 searches (+22%)
- Racing Post — 3,738 searches (-2%)
Under pressure: Racing Post — 3,738 searches (-82 lost)
Daily Racing
Today’s cards and tomorrow’s meetings
- Sporting Life — 189,301 searches (+12%)
- Racing Post — 82,235 searches (+2%)
- At The Races — 64,862 searches (+3%)
Under pressure: None — all top players gained
Major Events
Grand National, Cheltenham, Royal Ascot
- The Jockey Club — 2,378 searches (-46%)
- Ascot.com — 2,208 searches (+119%)
- Grand National.org.uk — 1,900 searches (+37%)
Under pressure: The Jockey Club — 2,378 searches (-1,999 lost)
Specialist Insights
Emerging Players: Several smaller sites showed remarkable growth:
- The Racing App surged 286%, from 1,114 to 4,296 searches
- British Horse Racing doubled its traffic to 15,327 searches
- Ascot.com jumped 83% capitalizing on event searches
Catastrophic Losses: Beyond GG’s 98% collapse:
- The Sun dropped 75% from 6,219 to 1,555 searches
- GG.co.uk fell 63% from 23,295 to 8,649 searches
- Irish Racing declined 53% from 16,665 to 7,842 searches
Analysts Corner
"September's data shows a clear shift towards authoritative media brands, with BBC's 74% surge demonstrating the value of comprehensive results coverage. The collapse of several specialist sites like GG’s suggests algorithm changes may be favoring established domains over niche players. On the flip side, Sporting Life's decline despite maintaining top position reveals the volatility beneath the surface. Commercial keywords remain highly competitive, with Oddschecker's 22% growth in betting terms showing aggregators can still compete effectively against operators."
Takeaways for Marketers
For CMOs:
- BBC’s surge captured £5.2M in potential annual traffic value
- Commercial traffic concentration: Top 3 sites control 68% of commercial searches
- Aggregators (At The Races, Oddschecker) outperform operators in conversion-focused keywords
ROI opportunity: Position 2→1 movement worth average £42,000/month in traffic value
For Marketing Managers:
- Target “horse racing results” variations — 640,000+ monthly searches with high volatility
- Tips content showing growth — 14% increase for category leaders
- Major vulnerability: Racing Post lost 23% in general racing terms
- BBC’s gains came from improving existing content, not new pages
For SEO Executives:
- Most volatile: “horse racing” moved 4 positions for BBC (136,710 searches)
- Daily racing keywords most stable — average 5% growth across top players
- Technical win: BBC’s mobile optimization correlates with ranking improvements
- Category focus needed: Major events down 46% for market leader
Coming Next Month
Will BBC maintain its momentum? Can Sporting Life defend its crown? And which collapsed site will stage a recovery?
Stay tuned for October’s Horse Racing Power Rankings.
Traffic estimates calculated using search volume multiplied by click-through rates based on ranking position. CTR rates: Position 1 (39.8%), Position 2 (18.7%), Position 3 (10.2%), with declining rates for lower positions.
Potential value calculated using 1% conversion rate × £346 lifetime value per customer and Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) £69. Ranking and search volumes from BigQuery analysis.
