Many of the world's best flock year on year to Meydan for the lucrative Dubai World Cup meeting.
As of 2026, the eight-race card includes five Group 1 contests as well as three Group 2s - all boasting eye-watering prize money pots.
The card builds up to the feature Dubai World Cup that puts up north of £5m to the winner.
Dubai World Cup meeting date & venue
The 2026 Dubai World Cup meeting takes place at Meydan racecourse on Saturday 28th March.
Meydan first staged the card in 2010 after previously being held at Nad Al Sheba Racecourse before its demolition.
Dubai World Cup meeting races & prize money
When added up, the racecard is the richest day of thoroughbred racing ran anywhere on the planet with a total purse of £20.4m.
For context, the total prize money on offer across all five days at Royal Ascot just eclipses £10m.
Time | Race | Winning prize |
12:20 | Godolphin Mile (Group 2) | £429,630 |
12:55 | Dubai Gold Cup (Group 2) | £429,630 |
13:30 | UAE Derby (Group 2) | £429,630 |
14:20 | Al Quoz Sprint (Group 1) | £644,444 |
14:55 | Dubai Golden Shaheen (Group 1) | £859,259 |
15:35 | Dubai Turf (Group 1) | £2,148,148 |
16:10 | Dubai Sheema Classic (Group 1) | £2,577,778 |
16:45 | Dubai World Cup (Group 1) | £5,155,556 |
Dubai World Cup meeting history
The Dubai World Cup meeting was first staged in 1995 and was practically unrecognisable to the spectacle that is offered up today.
For 14 years it was hosted at Nad Al Sheba before Meydan took its place in 2009. Initially, the total purse across the meeting was £3m - something that has grown year on year.
It's feature race, the Dubai World Cup, has skyrocketed in profile since the turn of the century and is now regularly targeted by the most revered connections from across the world.
Horses trained in the United Arab Emirates dominated the race in its early years, and again in the 2010s but the United States also have a great record in the race, claiming victory on 14 different occasions.
Singspiel remains the only horse trained in the UK to win the Dubai World Cup, landing the spoils for Sir Michael Stoute in 1997.
Owing to the surface it is run on, European contenders have been far more prolific in races such as the Dubai Turf and Sheema Classic.
In 2023, legendary pilot Frankie Dettori steered home Lord North to complete an unprecedented Dubai Turf hat-trick.
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