Third favorite sport of the French after football and tennis, horse riding brings together more than 660,000 licensees and generates some 14 billion euros in turnover per year.

Particularly dynamic, the sector also represents 146,000 jobs (including 66,000 in main activity), according to 2018 data from the French Institute of Horse and Riding (IFCE).

From the breeder to the riding instructor, including the rider, the farrier or the meat distributor, more than 100 professions spread over six areas (sport and leisure, racing, breeding, care and behavior, the utility horse or around the horse) today allow to work in relation with equines.

And the candidates are missing.

An awareness campaign

The internet portal Équiressources.fr, the “employment center” for the equine sector, sounded the alarm at the beginning of October. "We publish more than 3,500 offers per year and currently have a record of more than 1,000 vacancies to be filled on our platform," said Tiphaine Drouot, the site manager, in a press release. And to add: “Our sector has experienced recruitment difficulties for many years, but it is now reaching worrying figures which have a direct impact on companies in the sector. We are witnessing reductions in the number of horses by professionals, closures of structures, cancellations of equestrian tourism activities, all due to a lack of personnel. "

To overcome this lack of manpower, the IFCE and its partners have launched the campaign "The equine sector is recruiting - #lechevalrecrute", in order to raise awareness of recruitment issues and encourage vocations.

A growing aura

Despite these recruitment difficulties, the equine sector is enjoying growing recognition.

While French horsemanship entered the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of UNESCO in 2011, several trades related to equines participate in the competition for the Best Apprentices of France.

After the professions of farrier and saddler-harnesser, four new trades entered the competition on October 11, 2021, namely the riding teacher, who combines pedagogy and transmission of knowledge, the groom groom, who is at the listening and caring for equines, the training rider, who educates and trains horses intended for galloping horse races, and the lad-drive, who looks after and trains trotting racing equines.

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