Horse Racing Festivals Guide – Overview of the Biggest Meetings

It’s fair to say that horse racing festivals are something of a global phenomenon in English-speaking countries around the world. These major meetings showcase the best equine talent and it’s not unusual for racehorses to travel far and wide in search of the best prize money on offer across the planet.

This is our guide to the greatest galas in the sport of kings. After explaining the basics, we look at the top fixtures in the UK and Ireland, and then major events further afield.

What is a Festival in Horse Racing?

If race meetings take place over multiple days, then that constitutes a festival. Even a single card if the prize money is huge amounts to the same thing.

Each horse racing festival is different. Some are Flat races only, whereas others have National Hunt events only over jumps. There are even some rare examples of mixed horse racing cards that combine both.

With Flat racing, it can be strictly turf tracks for runners only or a mixture of grass and dirt action, depending on where it is in the world. Top meetings are less likely to take place on synthetic surfaces, however.

Many festivals have developed around one valuable contest, like Gold Cup races, and they build up to these. Other space the big events out, sparking debates about quantity over quality.

Perhaps the best of these don’t stand still, but develop and add new races to their schedules and programmes. Novelty sits side by side with tradition on the track.

Horse Racing Festivals in the UK & Ireland

Racing Tipster deals first and foremost with the major meetings close to home. After all, it’s only logical we focus our free racing tips on the best races in the British Isles.

While the below festivals aren’t an exhaustive list, they include most of the big races we have under Rules in Great Britain and the Emerald Isle. We proceed in chronological order through the calendar year.

Dublin Racing Festival

• Founded: 2018
• Where: Leopardstown
• When: January / February
• Big Races: Irish Champion Hurdle, Dublin Chase, Irish Gold Cup

Without doubt the best modern innovation in Irish jump racing. Leopardstown lies on the south side of Dublin and some bigwigs thought it’d be a great idea to combine standalone fixtures in January and February into one big weekend that sometimes straddles both months.

Bringing the Irish Champion Hurdle and Gold Cup cards together saw the birth of the Dublin Racing Festival in 2018. This relatively new concept has already produced multiple subsequent winners for the Cheltenham Festival, so the ends certainly justify the means.

Supporting cards have plenty of Grade 1 races on them like the Irish Arkle for novice chasers, a longer distance event over fences and two novice hurdles. The Dublin Chase, created specifically for this Festival, meanwhile, is a key trial for the Queen Mother Champion Chase.

Those who follow the form of such Leopardstown races can reap rewards at the spring festivals. The Dublin Racing Festival amounts to a stroke of genius, lying in the perfect place in the National Hunt calendar following Christmas but before Cheltenham. Speaking of which…

Cheltenham Festival

• Founded: 1911
• Where: Cheltenham
• When: March
• Big Races: Champion Hurdle, Queen Mother Champion Chase, Cheltenham Gold Cup

This is National Hunt horse racing’s premier fixture and the jewel in the jumping crown for The Jockey Club who own Cheltenham races at Prestbury Park in Gloucestershire. Run over four days with spring on the way in the Ides of March, this is often simply referred to as the Festival.

Starting with Champion Hurdle day on the Tuesday, 13 Grade 1s take place in the Cotswolds. Both that opening card and Style Wednesday, which includes the Queen Mother Champion Chase, have their races run on Cheltenham’s Old Course.

For the Thursday, which contains the Ryanair Chase and Stayers’ Hurdle as co-features, and Friday, Gold Cup day no less, the action switches to the New Course. Cheltenham Festival horse racing is no stranger to changes, additions and innovations of its own, however.

Recent ones include the reduction in distance of the historic National Hunt Chase, which is now open to professional jockeys to ride in. Before 2005, this Festival was just a three-day meeting, but now feels established over four days.

Grand National Festival

• Founded: 1839
• Where: Aintree
• When: April
• Big Races: Aintree Hurdle, Aintree Bowl, Topham Chase, Melling Chase, Grand National

Also known as the Aintree Festival, this meeting includes the world’s most famous steeplechase. Winning Grand National tips are what everyone attending on Merseyside is after, but there’s more to the April fixture than that. It has a number of other valuable contests as well.

Similar to Cheltenham with its Old and New Courses, there are two tracks at Aintree races today in use. There’s the Mildmay Course, which hosts most of the action including four Grade 1s on the opening Thursday like the Aintree Hurdle and Aintree Bowl.

Friday has the Melling Chase on this track, but also the famous fences of the separate Grand National circuit that goes right down to the Leeds-Liverpool Canal with the Topham Chase. When Saturday comes at the Aintree Festival, supporting that world-famous test of equine stamina is the Liverpool Hurdle.

The Grand National itself has evolved from the lottery for much of its history into a race where there’s greater equine safety. Among the steps to improve things for horse and jockey at Aintree Racecourse is a reduced maximum field size from 40 down to 34, bringing that in line with Flat racing.

Punchestown Festival

• Founded: 1850 or 1861
• Where: Punchestown
• When: April / May
• Big Races: Punchestown Champion Chase, Punchestown Gold Cup, Punchestown Champion Hurdle

Acting as the end of the National Hunt season gala in Ireland, Punchestown races don’t come any bigger than this five-day Festival. Evolving from a fixture over three days as recently as the late 1990s, there are championship races throughout the meeting mirroring those from Cheltenham.

Tuesday sees the Punchestown Champion Chase headline the opening day of the Punchestown Festival. On Wednesday, it’s their Gold Cup. Thursday has the Champion Stayers Hurdle top of the bill, while Friday at this fixture is the Punchestown Champion Hurdle.

Concluding things at Punchestown Racecourse on the Saturday are two Grade 1s acting as co-features. These are the Mares Champion Hurdle and Champion Four-Year-Old Hurdle. Just the same as Cheltenham, supporting cards contain top-level novice hurdles and chases, plus handicaps galore and Cross Country action.

While the UK has its standalone Jump Finale card at Sandown races the weekend before, Punchestown feels like the curtain coming down on the National Hunt season proper. With nights drawing out as April gives way to May, they can start and finish later.

Guineas Festival

• Founded: 1809
• Where: Newmarket
• When: May
• Big Races: 2000 Guineas, 1000 Guineas

Overlapping with the end of Punchestown, is the first of the English Classics on the Flat. The Guineas Festival from Newmarket races is now a three-day meeting from Friday to Sunday in early May.

After a low key opening day headlined by the Group 2 Jockey Club Stakes, the Rowley Mile hosts the 2000 Guineas on the Saturday. Its supporting card contains a sprint in the Group 3 Palace House Stakes and middle-distance handicap called the Suffolk Stakes.

Fillies and mares take centre stage on Sunday with the Group 2 Dahlia Stakes for older females the other big race on 1000 Guineas day. The Headquarters of the British Flat also has other horse racing festivals throughout the season.

Epsom Derby Festival

• Founded: 1780
• Where: Epsom Downs
• When: June
• Big Races: The Oaks, Coronation Cup, The Derby

The Epsom Derby is the premier Classic and most valuable race in terms of prize money run on these shores. It thus attracts the best middle-distance three-year-olds to the Surrey Downs every early summer.

It’s an uncomfortable truth that Epsom races today are pretty much all about the two-day Derby Festival now. Beginning on the first Friday in June when fillies only run in The Oaks, older horses can contest the Coronation Cup over the same mile-and-a-half distance.

Saturday builds to The Derby itself with Group 3 action and the rapid Epsom Dash for fans of sprint handicaps forming the main supporting races. The latter uses a downhill sprint course, reckoned the fastest turf track of its kind in the UK and Ireland.

Royal Ascot

• Founded: 1768
• Where: Ascot
• When: June
• Big Races: Queen Anne Stakes, St James’s Palace Stakes, Prince Of Wales’s Stakes, Ascot Gold Cup, Coronation Stakes, Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes

The Royal meeting is quite unlike any other. From fashion off the track to eight Group 1s, lots of competitive handicaps and juvenile races that unearth superstars, it seems to have it all. There are certainly no shortage of Royal Ascot tips with five consecutive days in the middle of June.

It all starts with a glut of Group 1 action. Opening with the Queen Anne Stakes for older milers, sprinters also strut their stuff on the Tuesday in the King Charles III Stakes, known for most of its history as the King’s Stand. Top three-year-old colts test Classic form in the St James’s Palace Stakes, meanwhile.

Wednesday at Ascot’s major meeting has the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes centre stage, supported by the Royal Hunt Cup, Queen’s Vase and more. Gold Cup day is slap bang in the middle of this iconic fixture. Thursday is also when the Ribblesdale Stakes for fillies takes place. Friday has the Commonwealth Cup and Coronation Stakes as its co-features.

Saturday wasn’t part of Royal Ascot until the meeting extended to include it in 2002. Before this, it was Ascot Heath day and treated as separate. The concluding card from the Royal meeting now has the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes as its main event, supported by the Hardwicke Stakes.

July Festival

• Founded: 1876
• Where: Newmarket
• When: July
• Big Races: Falmouth Stakes, July Cup

Back to Newmarket now for another three-day meeting. Unlike the Guineas Festival run on the Rowley Mile, the July Festival as its name suggests takes place on the July Course using the Bunbury Mile. Both tracks are on Newmarket Heath and essentially next to each other.

As with the Guineas, the opening day is low key with the Bahrain Trophy, July Stakes and Princess Of Wales’s Stakes all Pattern races. Group 1 action from the July Festival begins on the Friday with the Falmouth Stakes for fillies and mares, supported by the Duchess Of Cambridge Stakes for younger females.

Saturday builds to the July Cup for sprinters with the historic Bunbury Cup the big handicap and Superlative Stakes for juveniles on the undercard. What makes the big race so special is it’s now the first clash at Group 1 level between generations over six furlongs.

Galway Festival

• Founded: 1869
• Where: Ballybrit, Galway
• When: July / August
• Big Races: Galway Plate, Galway Hurdle

The Galway Races are as long as festivals get in the British Isles. On for an entire week spanning July and August, this meeting involves mixed cards of jumps and Flat. It’s handicaps, rather than conditions contests, that comprise the most valuable events from Ballybrit on the edge of the city.

Look out for Ladies Day in midweek when the Galway Hurdle headlines the Thursday card. The day before that, the Galway Plate over fences is the main event on Wednesday. Both share the same amount of prize money on offer.

Galway Festival horse racing also includes some big handicaps on the level. From the Colm Quinn BMW Mile Handicap on Tuesday right through to the Ahoonora Handicap on Sunday, it’s not unusual for runners to have multiple engagements during the meeting.

Glorious Goodwood

• Founded: 1802
• Where: Goodwood
• When: July / August
• Big Races: Goodwood Cup, Sussex Stakes, Nassau Stakes

As part of the Goodwood Estate, the track which hosts the Qatar Goodwood Festival every summer is in private ownership like Ascot and York. Better known as Glorious Goodwood, this five-day fixture overlaps with Galway.

The first of the big Goodwood races during the meeting is the long-distance Goodwood Cup on the last Tuesday in July. Following that, there’s the Sussex Stakes card for Wednesday and the fillies and mares only Nassau Stakes during Thursday, which is the midpoint.

Each of these days also has a Pattern race for juveniles as young horses have a chance to shine. After the Group 1 cards are done, Goodwood Festival horse racing action switches its focus to sprinting.

Friday has the King George Qatar Stakes over the flying five furlongs supported by the Golden Mile, while Saturday builds to the Stewards’ Cup, a Heritage Handicap also run on the sprint course, but over six furlongs. A Group 2 for fillies and mares, the Lillie Langtry Stakes, also features on this card.

Ebor Festival

• Founded: 1843
• Where: York
• When: August
• Big Races: Juddmonte International Stakes, Yorkshire Oaks, Nunthorpe Stakes, Ebor Handicap

As the summer holidays enter their closing stages, York races has the Ebor Festival on over four days. Derived from Eboracum, the old Latin name for the city in Roman times, this fixture begins on a Wednesday with the Great Voltigeur Stakes for St Leger hopefuls and the Juddmonte International Stakes over a mile-and-a-quarter.

Fillies and mares tackle the Yorkshire Oaks at York Racecourse on the Thursday of the Ebor. Supporting this is a valuable Sales race and the Group 2 Lowther Stakes for juvenile females. Friday has sprinters and stayers on show, thanks to the feature Nunthorpe Stake and Lonsdale Cup. Supporting both is a historic two-year-old males race, the Gimcrack Stakes.

Besides the richest Flat handicap in the Ebor Handicap itself, the Saturday of this festival now has the upgraded Group 1 City Of York Stakes over the specialists’ distance of seven furlongs. This is a recent decision of the European Pattern Committee that promises to pay off as the Knavesmire track treated this race as a top-level event in all but name for a while.

St Leger Festival

• Founded: 1776
• Where: Doncaster
• When: September
• Big Races: Park Hill Stakes, Doncaster Cup, St Leger Stakes

The oldest of the English Classics has a dedicated festival built up around it from Doncaster Racecourse in early autumn. Starting things off for the St Leger meeting, which is also four days, sees fillies and mares tackle the Group 2 Park Hill Stakes. Supporting this is the May Hill Stakes for juvenile females.

Friday at Doncaster races sees tradition crank up a notch with Town Moor’s oldest event, the Doncaster Cup over two-and-a-quarter miles. The Flying Childers Stakes allows young sprinters some time in the spotlight here as well. Watch out for steam engine themed events too like the Flying Scotsman Stakes and Mallard Handicap.

St Leger day is the Saturday and, in the build-up to the big race, the historic Portland Handicap and two Group 2s support it. These are the Champagne Stakes for two-year-old males and the Park Stakes for older horses over the same straight seven furlongs. Sunday at the meeting has the Leger Legends Race and Group 3 Sceptre Stakes for fillies and mares on the card.

Irish Champions Festival

• Founded: 2014
• Where: Leopardstown & Curragh
• When: September
• Big Races: Matron Stakes, Irish Champion Stakes, Flying Five Stakes, Irish St Leger

Formerly the Irish Champions Weekend, unlike other horse racing festivals this event uses two different racecourses for its cards. Everything begins at Leopardstown on the Saturday, overlapping with the St Leger from Doncaster.

There are two Group 1 races here in the Matron Stakes over a mile for fillies and mares, plus the Irish Champion Stakes. A third top-level race joins the programme from 2026 when the Champions Juvenile Stakes (registered as the Golden Fleece) becomes extended to a mile and a furlong.

Supporting races include the Solonaway Stakes, run for a time as the Boomerang Mile, and the Kilternan Stakes, which also attracts sponsorship. Most of the Group 1 races from the Irish Champions Festival are on the Sunday, however.

That card is at the Curragh races with the Irish St Leger among the feature races. Unlike the English equivalent, both older horses and geldings can run. Thanks to the Flying Five Stakes for sprinters, and the Moyglare Stud Stakes and Vincent O’Brien National Stakes for juveniles, more champions of the Flat in Ireland can be crowned during the meeting.

Christmas Festivals

• Where: Leopardstown & Limerick
• When: 26-29 December
• Big Races: Long Distance Novice Chase, Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase, Faugheen Novice Chase, Christmas Hurdle, Savills Chase, December Hurdle

The week between Christmas and New Year, especially Boxing Day horse racing, is really important to the sport. Nowhere more so than in Ireland. While we have the King George VI Chase headlining a two-day meeting from Kempton Park, the Emerald Isle has a couple of four-day fixtures for us.

Starting on St Stephen’s Day as they call 26 December across the Irish Sea, Leopardstown races join Limerick in putting on Christmas Festivals. The respective meetings begin with the Fort Leney Novice Chase, run as the Long Distance Novice Chase, and Lyons Of Limerick Jaguar Novice Hurdle (registered as the Dorans Pride).

Day two of these Christmas Festivals sees Leopardstown have all of its major races sponsored by leading bookmaker Paddy Power. The big handicap over fences is the Paddy Power Chase, while there’s Grade 1 action over shorter distances with the Paddy’s Rewards Club Chase and Paddy Power Future Champions Novice Hurdle. At Limerick, meanwhile, the Dawn Run Mares Novice Chase takes centre stage.

It’s the penultimate day, 28 December, where both courses have top level races. Leopardstown has its Christmas Hurdle, not to be confused with an event of the same name from Kempton races 48 hours earlier, and the Savills Chase. Limerick stages the Faugheen Novice Chase (formerly the Greenmount Park).

Ireland’s two Christmas Festivals conclude with the December Hurdle card from Leopardstown, supported by a Grade 3 hurdle race for mares only, and a low key day at Limerick. Handicaps play their part at the latter track with the Tim Duggan Memorial Handicap Chase and Sporting Limerick Handicap Hurdle on the last two days of the meeting.

Other Horse Racing Festivals in the British Isles

There are even more fixtures that include the word festival in them dotted around the UK and Ireland. The table below has all the information.

Festival Name	Where	When	Big Race(s)
Easter Festival	Fairyhouse	Easter	Fairyhouse Gold Cup, Irish Grand National
May Festival	Chester	May	Chester Vase, Ormonde Stakes, Chester Cup
Dante Festival	York	May	Duke Of York Stakes, Dante Stakes, Yorkshire Cup
Irish Guineas Festival	Curragh	May	Irish 2000 Guineas, Tattersalls Gold Cup, Irish 1000 Guineas
Northumberland Plate Festival	Newcastle	June	Seaton Delaval Handicap, Gosforth Park Cup, Northumberland Plate
Irish Derby Festival	Curragh	June	Pretty Polly Stakes, Irish Derby
Old Newton Cup Festival	Haydock	July	Lancashire Oaks, Old Newton Cup
Irish Oaks Weekend	Curragh	July	Sapphire Stakes, Irish Oaks, Curragh Cup, Minstrel Stakes
King George Weekend	Ascot	July	King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes
Harvest Festival	Listowel	September	Kerry National
Western Meeting / Ayr Gold Cup Festival	Ayr	September	Ayr Gold Cup
Future Champions Festival	Newmarket	October	Fillies’ Mile, Dewhurst Stakes
British Champions Day	Ascot	October	Champion Stakes, Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, Long Distance Cup, Champions Sprint Stakes
Winter Carnival	Newbury	November	Long Distance Hurdle, Coral Gold Cup
Christmas Festival	Kempton	December	King George VI Chase, Kauto Star Novices’ Chase, Christmas Hurdle

Major Horse Racing Festivals Overseas

The concept of festivals in horse racing is something that we’ve exported overseas. From across the Atlantic in America to the other side of the world in Australia and closer to home in the Middle East and Europe, here the big international galas of note.

Dubai World Cup Night

• Founded: 1996
• Where: Meydan, UAE
• When: March
• Big Races: Dubai World Cup, Sheema Classic, Golden Shaheen, Al Quoz Sprint, Dubai Turf

Inaugurated at Nad Al Sheba and switching to Meydan in 2009, the climax of the Dubai Carnival is just a single evening. This has multi-million dollar races on both dirt and turf on its card. Dubai World Cup Night attracts runners from all over the world.

In the build-up to the big race, there’s the Dubai Gold Cup for turf stayers, the UAE Derby for three-year-olds on dirt, plus the Godolphin Mile. These are all Group 2 races.

Meydan even has a race fittingly restricted Pureblood Arabian horses in the Kahayla Classic. Sprinters on their respective surfaces test themselves in the Al Quoz Sprint (turf) and Golden Shaheen (dirt). The Dubai Turf and Sheema Classic are both top-level grass races before the World Cup and its 2,000m trip.

Kentucky Derby Festival

• Founded: 1875
• Where: Churchill Downs, Louisville, Kentucky, USA
• When: May
• Big Races: Kentucky Oaks, Kentucky Derby

The big meeting at Churchill Downs in the Commonwealth of Kentucky has as its centrepiece the most famous race in America. For the Louisville area of the Bluegrass State, there’s a two-week festival embracing more than horse racing.

By far the best action on the track is on the first Friday and Saturday in May. With mint juleps in hand, racegoers first witness the Kentucky Oaks for three-year-old fillies is a huge event in its own right. Kentucky Derby day is something else, however, with 150,000 packed into Churchill Downs.

Supporting races from the card include Grade II action like the Pat Day Mile and Twin Spires Turf Sprint. The Kentucky Derby is one of five Grade Is on the schedule, however, alongside the Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic, Derby City Distaff, Churchill Downs Stakes and American Turf Stakes.

Belmont Stakes Racing Festival

• Founded: 1867
• Where: Belmont Park, Elmont or Saratoga Race Course, Saratoga Springs, New York, USA
• When: June
• Big Races: Acorn Stakes, Belmont Stakes

Renovations at Belmont Park between 2024 and 2026 mean the third leg of the US Triple Crown after the Kentucky Derby and Preakness Stakes had to move out of The Big Apple upstate to Saratoga Springs. This switch of venues from New York City to the Spa prompted a brief change of distance to the Belmont Stakes down to 2,000m from 2,400m.

The Test of the Champion is not the examination of stamina it usually is while the event takes place at Saratoga Race Course. During the temporary relocation, the Belmont Stakes Racing Festival has become a five-day meeting. Friday and Saturday again provide the best of the action.

Three-year-old fillies face the Acorn Stakes on the first of those cards with plenty more female only events on the track. They include the Just A Game Stakes, New York Stakes and Ogden Phipps Stakes. Belmont Stakes day itself builds to the feature contest thanks to supporting races like the Jaipur Stakes, Manhattan Stakes, Metropolitan Handicap and Woody Stephens Stakes.

Arc Weekend

• Founded: 1920
• Where: Longchamp, Paris
• When: October
• Big Races: Prix du Cadran, Prix de Royallieu, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, Prix de l’Abbaye, Prix de l’Opera, Prix de la Foret

Europe’s richest race takes place on the first Sunday in October. Shortened simply to the Arc, it has developed into an entire weekend’s worth of top-class horse racing from the Bois de Boulogne.

These two days from ParisLongchamp starts with the marathon Prix du Cadran and Prix de Royallieu, another long distance race for fillies and mares. Group 2s supporting these are the Prix Dollar and Prix Daniel Wildenstein.

Arc day itself begins in earnest with some top juvenile races. Following the Prix Marcel Boussac for fillies and Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere are valuable sprints like the Prix de l’Abbaye and Prix de la Foret, but also the females only middle-distance Prix de l’Opera. In amongst these is the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe itself over 2,400m.

Breeders’ Cup World Championships

• Founded: 1984
• Where: Different tracks each year, USA
• When: November
• Big Races: Breeders’ Cup Classic, Breeders’ Cup Turf

While almost all horse racing festivals have a permanent home, the Breeders’ Cup is different. The idea is for a change of venue across the United States each year with the World Championships even staged in Canada once. An end of season clash between horses from across the globe in November has flourished since its inaugural edition in 1984.

By the mid-2000s, the Breeders’ Cup expanded to a two-day fixture. Friday is all about juveniles taking each other on across dirt and turf. Come the Saturday, there are Sprint races, fillies and mares only events like the Distaff, Mile contests on both surfaces and the most valuable races of all. The Breeders’ Cup Classic over 2,000m and Breeders’ Cup Turf over 2,400m.

Horses must qualify for the World Championships with victories in “win and you’re in” races held across the planet. Breeders’ Cup races are thus by invite only with other hopefuls nervously waiting for additional slots.

Melbourne Cup Spring Carnival

• Founded: 1861
• Where: Flemington, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
• When: November
• Big Races: Melbourne Cup

The Victoria Racing Club stages a number of valuable races in Australia’s springtime, or the Northern Hemisphere’s autumn at various tracks, but only one has the moniker of “The Race That Stops a Nation”. That is the Melbourne Cup over 3,200m.

It’s the most valuable contest Down Under and the highlight of the season at Flemington in the city’s suburbs. Ballot exemptions can be obtained by horses successful in “win and you’re in” races both around Australia and across the world. Stringent medical checks mean only those runners at absolute peak fitness can take part in the Melbourne Cup.

FAQs

Next Race