Since its very first meeting on the 16th of May 1898, Southwell has been home to some of the finest small-course racing action the country has to offer. Race fans can watch a Southwell racing live stream free of any viewing charges.
See below for full details of how you can do that, and with zero subscription fees.
1) Sign up to bet365 here if you’re not already a member
2) Follow the ‘Live Streaming’ link & open the Schedule where you will see ‘All Sports’ > ‘Horse Racing’
To watch a race streamed from this course you just need to have a funded account or have placed a bet in the last 24 hours.
EVERY race in the UK and Ireland is streamed live at bet365. They show all races shown on At The Races and Racing TV.
You can also watch replays of all UK and Irish races covered by Racing TV and At The Races for free on the Horse Racing Archive at bet365.
Only available to eligible customers. To watch other races that are not streamed by At the Races from a UK track, a £0.50 win or £0.25 each-way (or currency equivalent) on your selection/s must be placed. Terms & conditions and geographical restrictions apply. 18+ gambleaware.co.uk
Southwell Upcoming Live Streamed Races
| Date | Time | Race | Class | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 04 APR 2024 | 14:05 | Get Raceday Ready Handicap Chase | 4 | 3m 60y |
| 04 APR 2024 | 14:35 | Free Digital Racecard At raceday-ready.com Novices' Handicap Chase (GBB Race) | 4 | 2m 4f 88y |
| 04 APR 2024 | 15:05 | Download The Racecourse App Raceday Ready Mares' Standard NH Flat Race (Cond/Amat) (GBB Race) | 5 | 1m 7f 182y |
| 04 APR 2024 | 15:35 | Get The Inside Track With raceday-ready.com Maiden Hurdle (GBB Race) | 4 | 1m 7f 182y |
| 04 APR 2024 | 16:10 | Download The Raceday Ready App Handicap Hurdle | 4 | 3m 60y |
| 04 APR 2024 | 16:45 | Get Raceday Ready Handicap Hurdle | 5 | 2m 4f 88y |
Set in 145 acres of unspoiled Nottinghamshire countryside, Southwell is well-known for being the only course in the United Kingdom that still stages racing on a fibresand artificial surface. It’s a material that facilitates year-round racing action.
Southwell Racing: Course Layouts
Southwell’s surface has drawn comparisons to American dirt tracks, with trainers agreeing it ranks among the most unique in Europe.
The main difficulty for jockeys and horses alike lies in the surface itself; Most other artificial tracks in the United Kingdom use alternatives such as Polytrack (Kempton Park, Lingfield Park, Chelmsford City) and Tapeta (Wolverhampton,Newcastle).
The fibresand produces far more kickback than traditional surfaces and this demands special training; As a result many of the horses run here are specialised to run at Southwell only.
The oval-shaped track lies seven miles from Newark and is accessible by the A617 through Rolleston. With an astonishing year-round calendar of over sixty meetings, Southwell hosts flat, mixed, and National Hunt races throughout the year.
Most flat racing takes place in the new year and most jumps racing towards Christmas.
The all-weather track is a left-handed course of one and a quarter miles. It has a home straight of three furlongs with a series of fair fences.
The National Hunt track is a tight left-hander which rides exceptionally fast during the summer but can change dramatically underfoot during the winter.
Brush-style hurdles and fences are unusually stiff for portable versions and can prove trappy for less nimble horses, resulting in plenty of fallers and unseats.
How Jockeys View the Course
Flat-racing expert Jason Weaver considers Southwell ‘the perfect equivalent of a left-handed American track’, with a severe kick-back and a wide host of underfoot feelings depending on the time of year and day.
Southwell’s ideal race winner will be able to deal with the kickback yet also have the stamina to run the course at a strong gallop.
Rider Aidan Coleman comments elsewhere on the flatness of Southwell, noticeable to the point that ‘it can often feel like you’re running down into the fences as horses tend to get onto their forehand.’
The track features an unusual spur but it is in fact the back straight, according to Coleman, that claims the most casualties.
Southwell’s Chequered Past
Racing has taken place at Southwell since the 19th century. However, long before the current course near Rolleston was built, informal races took place in Burbage Green (central Southwell).
These early races became unprecedentedly popular with locals making the pilgrimage from Nottingham, Lincoln, and Newark to see the action.
The race days would typically be livened up by the performances of travelling entertainment companies and the refreshment-selling of market stalls.
By 1886, the races had outgrown their humble plot and a new track was built by the Ropewalk and Kirklington Road.
Compromises in the racing surface, however, led to the unfortunate death of a local jockey and by 1897 the company had lost its racing licence. The search for a new venue began in earnest.
The conveniently-located Rolleston site was eventually settled upon in 1898 for the grand opening races. A wooden grandstand housing 1200 onlookers was built for the occasion; A Sporting Life correspondent remarked how ‘the weather was simply delightful and the attendance was huge’.
Winners on the opening day included McBoozer, owned by local figure Mr Gale. In the words of the correspondent, Southwell looked set to enjoy ‘a long future.’
Fall and Rise of Southwell
As with most aspects of public life and leisure, horse racing was put on hiatus during the First and Second World Wars. The Southwell course was requisitioned by the RAF as a storage depot during the latter.
Decades of successful racing were marred only by the frequent flooding and poor going. Sadly, these forced the abandonment of a great many sorely-missed events.
It was only in November 1989 that the Southwell Executive took the leap and introduced the fibresand track; It was the first of its kind in Europe, to guarantee year-round racing.
A successful opening of the newly renovated course was followed swiftly by the introduction of flat racing in the same year.
After being forced to face multi-million-pound insurance bills due to the flooding of 2007, suspicions began to be raised surrounding the suitability of the surface.
The floods resurfaced in 2012, depositing nine inches of water inside some of Southwell’s buildings and badly damaging the grandstand.
Top Races to Watch Live from Southwell
Despite these setbacks, however, the course is still one of the only courses in Britain that can offer guaranteed racing the whole year-round. It’s part of the artificial ground British niche of only six racecourses.
Here are some of the calendar highlights of races that you can see live streamed direct from Southwell:
| Month | Meeting | Race |
|---|---|---|
| January | Winter Flat Racing | Betway Novice Median Auction Stakes |
| January | Winter Evening Floodlit Flat Racing | Betway Casino Handicap |
| January | Winter Flat Racing | Betway Sprint Handicap |
| February | Spring Flat Racing | Ladbrokes Boost Handicap |
| February | Spring Flat Racing | SunRacing Maiden Stakes |
| February | Spring Flat Racing | Betway Apprentice Handicap |
| March | Spring Flat Racing | Toalsbet Handicap Chase |
| March | Spring Flat Racing | Ladbrokes Home Of The Odds Boost Handicap |
| March | Spring Mixed Racing | sunracing.co.uk Handicap |
| April | Spring Flat Racing | Betway Sprint Handicap |
| April | Spring Jumps Racing | toalsbet.com Open Hunters' Chase |
| April | Spring Flat Racing | SW And AT Darby Memorial Handicap |
| May | Floodlit Flat Racing | Sky Sports Racing Sky 415 Handicap |
| May | Floodlit Jumps Racing | Southwell Golf Club Handicap |
| May | Floodlit Jumps Racing | Derek Shaw Racing Handicap Chase |
| June | Summer Afternoon Jumps Racing | Watch Royal Ascot On Sky Sports Racing Handicap Chase |
| June | Summer Afternoon Jumps Racing | Sky Sports Racing Virgin 535 Mares' Novices' Hurdle |
| July | Floodlit Jumps Racing | TFM Freedom Handicap Chase |
| July | Afternoon Racing | Southwell Golf Club Handicap Hurdle |
| August | Afternoon Racing | Alea Casino Nottingham Novices' Handicap Chase |
| September | Afternoon Jumps Racing | Jigsaw Sports Branding Handicap Hurdle |
| October | Autumn Jumps Racing | Coopers Marquees Handicap Chase |
| October | Autumn Floodlit Flat Racing | Mintbet Mares' Maiden Hurdle |
| October | Autumn Floodlit Flat Racing | attheraces.com Handicap |
| November | Winter Afternoon Flat Racing | Betway Live Casino Handicap |
| November | Winter Afternoon Jumps Racing | attheraces.com Novices' Hurdle |
| November | Winter Afternoon Flat Racing | Bombardier British Hopped Amber Beer Handicap |
| December | Winter Jumps Racing | Sky Sports Racing Sky 415 Mares' Novices' Handicap Chase |
| December | Winter Floodlit Racing | Betway Novice Stakes |
| December | Gentlemen's Day | Several |
Southwell is part of Arena Racing Company, the largest racecourse company in the United Kingdom; It’s led by Executive Director Mark Clayton andl continues to cement its bold reputation in track design.
In 2019, the track became the first of its kind to install high-powered LED floodlights; This meant racing could not only take place throughout the year, but now also round-the-clock.
Accordingly, the course now hosts over sixty-five race meetings per year.
The floodlight system is the same kind used at Wimbledon Centre Court, Twickenham, and a number of Premier-League stadiums. It has been commended by seasoned fibresand jockeys Joe Fanning and Luke Morris.
Legal Live Streams
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How it Works
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Further Live Stream Options
More legal live streams for horse racing can be found at the following sites. Similar conditions apply (i.e. having a deposit active or a bet in the past 24 hours):
– William Hill
– Betfred
– Coral
Last updated April, 2024
Get yourself ready for Southwell racing live stream action by watching this video. Locker Room Talk, trained by Nigel Twiston-Davies and owned by Carl Hinchy, drops the ball. This exciting race is ultimately bagged by True Romance, trained by Julia Brooke and owned by K S Ward.
Southwell Racing Live Stream FAQs
🎥 Do I need to pay a subscription for the Live Stream?
No, there is no subscription charge. You’ll need to register on the site first, which only takes a minute.
🏇 Are there other races available, too?
Yes, there are many other races that you can watch – just take a look at the schedule.
⌚ When will the race coverage start?
The race coverage begins approximately two to three minutes before the race is scheduled.