Saudi Arabia set to host the world’s richest horse race — “The Saudi Cup”

Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh is set to host the Saudi Cup which will become the richest-ever horse race in history when its inaugural edition takes place in February 2020.

The race will be free to enter and free to run in. The prize for the winning horse will be US$10,000,000 with horses down to 10th place sharing another US$10,000,000 between them.

Announcing the creation of the Saudi Cup, His Royal Highness Prince Bandar bin Khalid Al Faisal, said: “The introduction of the Saudi Cup as an international race is without doubt the most significant event in the history of horseracing in Saudi Arabia, and demonstrates our resolve to develop this great sport in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and also our ambition to become a leading player on horseracing’s world stage.

“We look forward to welcoming international horsemen and women, the media, racing enthusiasts and the public to Riyadh in 2020.”

An undercard of supporting races will be announced at a later stage.

The Pegasus World Cup had a peak value of US$16 million in 2018 while the Dubai World Cup is currently worth US$12 million. In terms of turf races, the richest is in Australia (the Everest) and is worth US$9.8 million, in Japan the mark is US$6 million for the Japan Cup and Europe’s most lucrative event (the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe) has a prize fund of US$5.6 million.