Dubai Racing Club announces partnership with Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series for four Dubai World Cup races

- Winners of four Group 1 races at the Dubai World Cup meeting will gain automatic entry to the prestigious Breeders’ Cup World Championships Rashed bin Dalmook: This is a significant development for international horseracing, further strengthening the position of both the Dubai World Cup and the Breeders’ Cup—two of the most important events on the global racing calendar Drew Fleming: This partnership with the Dubai Racing Club reflects the continued progress toward the global unification of our sport and rewards international contenders for competing at the highest level Dubai Racing Club has announced a new partnership with the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series, granting winners of four Group 1 races at the Dubai World Cup meeting automatic entry to the prestigious Breeders’ Cup World Championships. The winners of the G1 Dubai World Cup, G1 Dubai Golden Shaheen, G1 Longines Dubai Sheema Classic, and G1 Dubai Turf will secure automatic berths in corresponding Breeders’ Cup races. The Dubai World Cup winner will gain entry to the Breeders’ Cup Classic, the Dubai Golden Shaheen winner will qualify for the Cygames Breeders’ Cup Sprint, the Dubai Sheema Classic winner will earn a spot in the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf, and the Dubai Turf winner will secure a place in the Breeders’ Cup Mile. The Dubai World Cup meeting, set to take place on 5 April 2025 at the iconic Meydan Racecourse, is renowned as the world’s most spectacular race day. This partnership further strengthens its status as one of the premier global horseracing events, attracting elite horses and connections from around the world. Sheikh Rashed bin Dalmook bin Juma Al Maktoum, Chairman of Dubai Racing Club, said: “This is a significant development for international horseracing, further strengthening the position of both the Dubai World Cup and the Breeders’ Cup—two of the most important events on the global racing calendar. “We are delighted to enter this partnership and thank the Breeders’ Cup team for expanding their Challenge Series. This will enable four winners from the Dubai World Cup 2025 meeting to compete in the United States later this year, and we look forward to welcoming winners from the Breeders’ Cup 2025 to Dubai in March 2026.” This year’s Breeders’ Cup will take place at Del Mar, California, on 31 October and 1 November. Drew Fleming, President and CEO of Breeders’ Cup Limited, said: “Breeders’ Cup Limited is pleased to expand our international Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series with the addition of four premier races from the Dubai World Cup meeting. “This partnership with the Dubai Racing Club reflects the continued progress toward the global unification of our sport and rewards international contenders for competing at the highest level. We appreciate the spirit of collaboration and shared pursuit of excellence that brought this opportunity to life and look forward to welcoming four Breeders’ Cup Challenge winners from Meydan to Del Mar.” As part of the agreement, winners of the four Breeders’ Cup races will also receive automatic entry into the corresponding races at the Dubai World Cup 2026 meeting. Additionally, Breeders’ Cup will cover the entry fees for the winners of the four Dubai races to compete in their respective divisions at the Breeders’ Cup World Championships 2025. A travel allowance will also be provided for all starters based outside North America. To receive these benefits, the Challenge winner must be nominated to the Breeders’ Cup programme by the pre-entry deadline of 20 October 2025. For more information, visit dubairacingclub.com and breederscup.com.