Popular Horse Racing Events in Ireland

Popular Horse Racing Events in Ireland

Horse racing has always been a paradise for punters in Ireland. The horse racing scene you have in Ireland is a thoroughbred one with some of the world's best races. The sport continues to gather the second largest spectatorship in the country next to Gaelic football.

The sport has a deep history that dates back to several hundreds of years carefully persevered through the years. And so, there's more to the love for the sport; it is more of cultural heritage.

The sport's season starts in March every year and ends in December. Just like football, horse racing is so big; there is always a game every Saturday. These races act as a focal point for social and sporting activities in Ireland. That explains why several people take to betting shops and betting websites to place their bets every week. And now that mobile platforms are becoming popular, we’ve seen horse racing mobile gambling for real money applications. Read on to find out about horse racing in Ireland.

Most popular horse racing events in Ireland

In Ireland, there are several popular horse racing events. You can place your bets on any of the following.

The Galway Festival

Every July in Ireland, the festival of horse racing is held. The festival brings together several prestigious horse racing games in Ireland. Important amongst them are the Galway Plate and the Galway hurdles.

On average, about 150,000 people turn out every year to see this festival, with Thursday being the most popular day of the week. Its popularity stems from the fact that it is the day set aside for female riders. It is usually called the ladies day, and on that day, you will find people dressed gorgeously. The festival gathers fans from Ireland and other parts of the world.

Curragh Irish Derby

The Curragh Irish Derby started in 1866, and ever since, the racing event has continued to run annually since the end of World War II. The event is one of the most prestigious Horse racing events in Ireland and the world.

The event is a flat race type; that is, it welcomes horses of all ages, except children under age three.

Every year, the event takes place in June or early July, and it draws just as many spectators as the Galway festival. It is a relatively long race, taking up to 1 mile and 4 furlongs.

Unlike the Galway festival, the Curragh Irish Derby only rose to its international reputation recently in 1962. As a result, its pool prize increased with better sponsorship and many more. Today, the race and its purse are sponsored by Dubai Duty-Free.  

Irish Champions Stakes

This is relatively new in Ireland, as it started in 1976. Like Curragh, the Irish Championship Stakes is a flat race, and it is open to horses that are at least three years of age. However, the race is a bit shorter than the Curragh Irish Derby as it spans a length of one mile and two furlongs.

The annual event is held in September, and the race plays an incredible role in preparing horses for other final significant races of the year. So, many players use this event as a prediction metric of how well the horses that participate will perform in their later races.  All things being equal, without injury or any problems, winners from this race typically win other Group 1 races like the Champion Stakes, Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, or even the Breeders Cup.

The Irish Triple Crown

This event gets its inspiration from a similar event in England called the English Triple crown. The event brings together three other horse racing events. Interestingly, the three events in the English Triple crown and the Irish version all have similar names.

Irish Triple Crown has the Irish St. Leger, the Irish 2,000 Guineas, and the Irish Derby. Since its start in 1921, the event has contestants compete in three of these events, one after the other. The final winner in all three even is crowned the winner and hence the name triple crown.

Being highly competitive, in its over 100 years of existence, only two people have won the Triple crown. The first winner was in 1935, while the second came about seven years later in 1942.

The event is held from May to June every year, and all its races take place at the Curragh Racecourse.

The Punchestown Irish National Hunt Festival

This festival is one of the biggest events in Ireland's social and sporting calendar. The festival is held to conclude the jump season of horse racing in Ireland. Also, it is a significant festival of the National Hunt season in Ireland.

For those familiar with the Cheltenham Festival in England, this festival is very similar to it. Punchestown takes place in April every year, and it runs from Tuesday till Saturday. The most excellent highlight of the festival is its championship races.