GBGB registered 6,307 greyhounds in 2022 which represented a fall of 462 greyhounds (roughly 7%) compared to 2021 and a continuation of almost uniform decline in the last 20 years.
However there are some other interesting features. According to our calculations there were 49,311 races in 2022, some 455 fewer than the previous year (around 1%) though many of those can be attributed to the unprecedented number of cancelled meetings due to sun, rain, frost and of course the death of HM Queen Elizabeth.
Interestingly though, also according to our calculations, there were 7,661 empty traps last year, roughly one in every six and a half races, compared to roughly one in every nine and half races the previous year.
Irish greyhounds contributed around 87% of the GBGB figures (810 Brits/5,497 Irish)
Meanwhile the Irish Stud Book reported virtually unchanged breeding figures in 2022, 2,126 litters compared to 2,160 in 2021.
One final snippet of info that might put a slightly different angle on these stats.
The 6,307 greyhounds registered by the Board, is just 16 more than was registered by the NGRC in 1959, when the NGRC were the governing body for 64 greyhound tracks! The current GBGB figure is 20.
