Gov’t and Jockey Club agree to end horse racing from April

The government has signed an agreement with the Macau Horse Racing Company Limited (Macau Jockey Club) to end its operations effective April 1, 2024, the Secretary for Administration and Justice, André Cheong, announced yesterday morning in a government press conference.

Cheong said the decision to end over four decades of horse racing activities in Macau came after the company’s formal request to close, due to the lack of general interest in the activity that has resulted in the concessionaire accumulating debts.

On the line is a contract signed with the government for a monopoly operation of horse racing and consequent betting in Macau that began March 1, 2018, and would have extended until August 31, 2042.

At the press conference, Cheong said, “Earlier, the Macau Horse Racing Company presented to the government a request for the termination of the exclusive concession contract due to their difficulties in the operation of the horse racing activities which does not meet the current needs of social development.”

Cheong noted that although the Club’s long history spans over 40 years, recently the activity has been progressively less attractive to both residents and tourists, a fact that led the government, “after an in-depth study, to accept the request from the MJC.”

The termination of the concession contract was mutually agreed to be enforced from April 1 this year.

Until March 31, the MJC will continue to operate horse races according to the schedule, said the Secretary.

Workersí handling and horsesí relocation to be complete within 1 year

Two of the major issues that the government said were discussed were the situation of the MJC workers as well as the treatment to be given to the horses.

Cheong said one of the conditions of the agreement now signed is that the company will try, as much as possible, to transfer staff members who are local residents to other services or departments within the same company group/structure. In cases in which this is not possible, Cheong said that fair solutions according to the law and respecting the workers’ labor rights should be found.

According to the director of the Labour Affairs Bureau (DSAL), Wong Chi Hong, who also attended the press conference, there are currently at the MJC some 254 local workers as well as over 300 non-resident workers (TNR).

“We will discuss and explain to the employees what are their labor rights according to their individual situation and we will also see if the company can move the locals to other divisions under the Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM),” Wong said.

Cheong added most of the workers will not be dismissed immediately after the company ceases operating as “there will certainly be a long period necessary to handle the horses’ situation and so most of these work[er]s will need to continue to perform their duties until the whole process of relocation of the horses concludes.”

The Secretary also added that some people may be offered early retirement or other options to fulfill their labor rights-related compensation.

All the labor-related as well as horse transfer or relocation procedures must be concluded by March 31, 2025, so the company will also be allowed to continue to have possession of all the venues and facilities until this date.

Questioned by the media, Cheong said the horses final destination is uncertain, even where owners are local, but they will need to be relocated outside Macau as there will be no place to keep them after the facility closes.

MJC land to be put under govít land reserves

Another of the matters in discussion yesterday morning was the one related to the future of the MJC facilities.

According to information discovered by the Times the whole land area where the MJC is located consists of over 400,000 square meters. In the late 1990s three parts of this land were set aside for the construction of the residential development “Oscar Crescent,” for the construction of the “Roosevelt Macau Hotel” and another commercial and residential facility named “River Let.”

According to Cheong, the deal inked yesterday notes that from April 1, 2025, all the land as well as facilities built on it will revert to the government without any compensation to the previous concessionaire.

The Secretary said that for the time being, these land resources will be added to the Macau SAR land reserves for future use, ensuring that they would not be used for gaming-related activities.

Cheong said the government is “going to do an overall plan to see how to make the best possible use of that plot of land” but that this will not be done immediately.

Questioned on the parcels that have been developed, the Secretary said, “Those projects were completed before the 2018 contract, so they aren’t part of that contract, which is the document we are addressing now. They are off that contract so they are not considered as having any part of this process.”