The bloom may be off betting operator Betfred’s purchase of the Tote as the UK racing industry considers launching a rival pool betting business.

Betfred’s £265m deal for the Tote gave it an exclusive right over race pool betting in the UK until 2018. But the Mail on Sunday reported that major UK racing stakeholders including The Jockey Club and Racecourse Media Group had begun exploring their post-2018 options.

The racing stakeholders have reportedly set up a steering group to consider the possibility of a Tote alternative. The group plans to invite other racing bodies and leading UK bookmakers to join their discussions and talks have already been initiated with potential technology providers and international race betting outfits.

The timing could be coincidental, but the news comes after Betfred boss Fred Done took a typically defiant stance towards racing’s new Authorized Betting Partner (ABP) scheme, which limits racing sponsorship to operators who remit a certain portion of online betting revenue back to racing. In December, Done said relations between betting and racing were “worse than they’ve ever been. There’s no trust.”