PMU was founded in 1930 by French Horseracing Associations to offer pari-mutuel betting opportunities away from the racecourse. PMU is the sole off-track betting operator in France, the number one pari-mutuel company in Europe and third largest worldwide.

After over 80 years of wagering innovations, PMU has evolved into a multi-activity leisure company with a global reach. PMU operates two national TV channels in France and since 2010 has extended the betting product range to include online poker and fixed-odds sports betting.

Nevertheless, PMU’s core mission remains the development, marketing and promotion of horserace betting, with a primary role to offer pari-mutuel services that fund purses for French trotting, thoroughbred and jump racing.

In 1985, PMU became an Economic Interest Group (EIG), with non-profit and quasi-government status, and is now made up of 58 horseracing associations. PMU is run by a Board of Directors which includes:

• PMU’s Chairman & CEO
• PMU’s Managing Director
• Four representatives from the French national government Ministries of Finance and Agriculture (two each)
• Two representatives from each of the master Horseracing Authorities - France Galop (flat and jump racing) and Le Trot (harness racing)

PMU by the numbers*: 2014

$11.3 billion: Total bets placed on horseracing, sporting events and poker;
$10.3 billion: Total bets placed on horseracing;
$8.5 billion: Winnings paid out to punters by PMU, a 75.3% rate of return;
$1.8 billion: Internet bets (horseracing, sporting events, poker), making www.pmu.fr one of France’s leading e-commerce sites;
$960 million: Net profit, paid in full to EIG member racing associations that finance the horseracing sector.

Thanks to its economic model and to supervision by the State, PMU guarantees the security of its operations, with transparency and trust key PMU values.

PMU chairs the European Pari-Mutuel Association (EPMA) and is an associate member of the World Lottery Association (WLA).

* all figures converted from €1.00 to US$ at 1.13 rate