Scotland and Wales have become the first two countries in the UK to officially ban greyhound racing.
Within the space of 24 hours, MPs from both of the nations voted in favour of a motion outlawing the sport.
The good news is that it appears neither England nor Ireland, where greyhound racing remains incredibly popular, are set to follow suit.
But it’s another blow for UK bookmakers at a time when they could do without many more of them.
Gone to the Dogs
The drama all began to unfold on Tuesday of this week.
The Senedd met to vote on the future of greyhound racing in Wales, with 39 voting in favour of the ban, two MPs against and two more abstaining.
But the decision has been met with plenty of opposition in Wales after civil servants, who had been tasked with devising a research report into the sport, told ministers that there was not enough evidence to justify the ban.
However, the Senedd has pressed ahead with the ban anyway, with April 2027 the earliest that the prohibition could be introduced.
Although Wales only has one active greyhound track – Valley Greyhounds in Ystrad Mynach, Caerphilly, the breeding and racing of dogs remains a popular pastime for many in the country.
An appeal is likely to be launched by the Greyhound Board of Great Britain (GBGB), who believe that the legislation is ‘unlawful’ given the evidence presented in the build-up to the vote.
The deputy first minister for rural affairs in Wales, Huw Irranca-Davies, said:
“Wales is a progressive nation, committed to ethical standards and forward-thinking legislation.
“This Bill strengthens our reputation as a leader on animal welfare and delivers the standards that the people of Wales rightly expect.”
Meanwhile, barely 24 hours later, greyhound racing was banned in Scotland too.
Although there are no active dog tracks in the country – Thornton Stadium in Kirkcaldy closed last year, greyhounds are still bred and trained north of the border, before being raced in England or Ireland.
A motion was debated in the Scottish Parliament, with 70 of the MSPs voting in favour of the bill and 27 against. Another 19 abstained from the vote.
The new legislation will make it a criminal offence to ‘allow a greyhound to compete on an oval racetrack in Scotland.’ Punishments for doing so would include fines of up to £20,000 and prison sentences of a maximum of five years.
There were once 20 active greyhound stadia in Scotland, with many thousands turning out each week to see the dogs put through their paces. However, as has been the case across the UK, the voice of campaigners has grown louder simultaneously to a general drop-off in interest in the sport.
The chief executive of the GBGB, Mark Bird, described the ban as ‘unevidenced and illogical.’
“In the final weeks before an important election, Scottish constituents will find it simply unbelievable that their representatives have wasted hours of precious parliamentary time introducing a law to ban something that does not even exist in their nation,” Bird commented.
At the Races
At the time of writing, there are no plans to ban greyhound racing in England or Ireland. However, supporters of the sport will be concerned that a precedent has now been set in two UK nations – particularly in England, where senior political figures are known for their ‘flip flopping’ on divisive issues.
In February 2025, when the idea of banning greyhound racing was raised in Wales, the UK culture secretary Lisa Nandy revealed that there were no plans for a prohibition to be rolled out in England.
“We have absolutely no plans whatsoever to ban greyhound racing. We appreciate the joy that it brings to many, many people in our country and the economic contribution that it makes,” Nandy said in the Commons.
In October 2025, a petition to ban greyhound racing in England – which had reached 55,580 signees – reached its six-month limit. In response to the petition, a governmental spokesperson replied:
“The government has no plans to ban greyhound racing.
“The government considers it a well-regulated sport and recognises the contribution it makes to many people’s lives as well as to the economy.”
In Ireland, greyhound racing remains incredibly popular. And there, the agriculture minister Martin Heydon has categorically stated that the sport will not be banned in the Emerald Isle.
It’s estimated that around 10% of all bets taken in the UK are on greyhound races.