The Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia has unveiled plans for the 2026-27 Riyadh Racing Season, with a broader programme, increased prize money and two new series designed to strengthen opportunities for locally bred horses.
Riyadh Racing Season 2026-27 will begin on 16 October 2026. The programme will feature 50 race days and a six-month campaign, with the new Riyadh Crown Series for colts, geldings and fillies and the Riyadh Sword Series for locally bred fillies adding fresh pathways through the domestic programme.
The Riyadh Crown Series will carry total prize money of SAR6 million across three legs. It will open on 4 December 2026 with a 1400-metre race for two-year-olds worth SAR500,000. The series will continue on 22 January 2027 with another 1400-metre Open for three-year-olds, again carrying SAR500,000, before reaching its main target on 12 March with the 1600-metre Domestic Group 1 King Abdulaziz Cup, worth SAR5 million.
The Riyadh Sword Series will offer SAR1.53 million and focus on locally bred fillies. Its first leg, the Prince Abdullah Bin Jalawi Cup, will be run over 1400 metres on 5 December 2026 for two-year-olds, with SAR300,000 available. The second leg will be the SAR300,000 1000 Guineas over 1400 metres on 8 January 2027, before the series reaches its final stage over 1600 metres in the Fillies Mile on Saudi Cup weekend. That race will carry a purse of US$250,000 and will be open to both local and imported fillies.
The changes extend well beyond the two new series. Several established races will carry higher purses, with the Group 3 Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Cup rising from SAR1.5 million to SAR2 million and the Listed Crown Prince Cup increasing from SAR1 million to SAR1.5 million.
The King Saud Cup and Listed King Faisal Cup will each rise to SAR1 million from SAR800,000, while the Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Cup and Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz Cup will each move to SAR800,000. The Listed King Abdulaziz Racecourse Championship will also increase from SAR300,000 to SAR500,000.
A notable change to the international standing of the programme is the promotion of the 1600-metre Saudi Derby on Saudi Cup weekend from Group 3 to Group 2. The race has developed a strong international identity since its introduction, with winners representing Japan, the United States, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.
Japan has supplied three winners through Full Flat, Pink Kamehameha and Forever Young. The United States has been represented by Pinehurst, while Golden Vekoma carried the United Arab Emirates flag in 2025. Saudi Arabia has also celebrated victories through Commissioner King and Al Haram.
The wider schedule will feature 21 major feature-race days, with seven key weekends built around the Juvenile Championship, Crown Prince Cup, Kings’ Weekend, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques weekend, Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Festival, Saudi Cup weekend and King Abdulaziz Cup.
Across the programme, SAR197.8 million will be allocated to major cups, contributing to total prize money of SAR236.3 million. Racing will be staged on Fridays and Saturdays during the main Riyadh programme, giving the season a more regular weekly rhythm.
The Founder’s Cups will also receive a new position on the calendar and will carry total prize money of SAR10.9 million, making the meeting the richest day of racing outside Saudi Cup weekend. The programme will also introduce the Princess Noura bint Abdulrahman bin Faisal Cup, a Listed Purebred Arabian race worth SAR300,000, as part of the Founder’s Cups card.
The scale of the new programme reflects the Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia’s continued effort to build a stronger domestic structure while giving locally bred horses more defined routes into important races. The new series provide a clearer progression from juvenile contests to higher-level races, with the Riyadh Crown Series culminating in a major domestic Group 1.
The current official calendar lists Riyadh racing from October 2026 into March 2027, with Saudi Cup weekend scheduled for 5 and 6 February 2027 at King Abdulaziz Racecourse. Further meeting details are expected to be released as the new season approaches.
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