The Racing Partnership Case – The Rights and Obligations Of Distributors Of Live Sports Betting Data

The Court of Appeal’s recent judgment in The Racing Partnership v Sports Information Services[1]  is essential reading for practitioners advising those who seek to exploit live sporting data as a commercial asset. Reversing the judgment of the High Court, the Court of Appeal held that Sports Information Services was liable for unlawful means conspiracy, but not for breach of confidence, in collecting and distributing key ‘race day’ data from horseracing arenas which The Racing Partnership had an exclusive contractual right to exploit.

This article examines the background to the case and the implications of the judgment for the law of breach of confidence/misuse of confidential information and unlawful means conspiracy.