Doncaster Racecourse is proud to launch the 2026 Betfred St Leger Festival at Wentworth Woodhouse, the historic estate of one of the Festival’s founders and owner of the first winning horse, the 2nd Marquess of Rockingham. The Festival will also celebrate the 250th anniversary of the first running of the World’s oldest Classic horserace.
First run in 1776, the Betfred St Leger Stakes is considered one of the ultimate tests for three-year-old thoroughbred racehorses in Britain and represents the third leg of the historic Triple Crown. Over the years, the race has been graced by some of the great champions of the sport from across both Britain and Ireland.
The race is named in honour of founder Anthony St Leger, who lived at Park Hill, near Doncaster, and is run over a distance in excess of a mile and three quarters. The 2026 renewal will look to celebrate the history of the great race and racing’s importance to the City of Doncaster and the local community.
After bumper crowds graced Town Moor across the four-day Betfred St Leger Festival in 2025, Doncaster Racecourse is pleased to confirm further enhancements to the raceday experience for customers in 2026.
These include an improved family enclosure with guests permitted to enter the newly entitled “Picnic” zone with up to 4 cans of a drink of their choice, as well as enhanced hospitality options across the full Festival, upgrades to the Ladies Day Champagne Lawn features and the iconic Style Awards – including a renewed partnership with Meadowhall.
Building on the success and positive feedback from 2025, this year will see the return of the festival-style County Enclosure features, including the Stable Yard Party Barn, Street Feast Food Village, Champagne Bar, St Leger Tavern, and exclusive live acts after racing across the first three days of the Festival.
This includes the announcement of Capital Breakfast DJ, television presenter, podcast host, and Sunday Times bestselling author Jordan North to play live after racing on Betfred St Leger Day, Saturday 12 September.
On the track, the popular Leger Legends Stakes, Britain’s only charity race for retired professional jockeys will move to Betfred Doncaster Cup Day, Friday 11 September. The race will once more see legends of the weighing room back in the saddle to raise vital funds for the Injured Jockeys Fund and National Horseracing College, charities central to British horseracing and to Doncaster as a whole.
The perpetual Betfred St Leger Stakes trophy, a large rose water dish depicting the white rose of Yorkshire was designed by Sheffield based silversmith Chris Knight in 2007 to mark the redevelopment of Doncaster Racecourse.
The iconic trophy features a removable central rose bowl, the design of which is reimagined each year by a different contemporary silversmith and is offered to the winning Owner of the Betfred St Leger Stakes as a memento. In 2026, the centre will be designed by silversmith Jen Ricketts, who is based in Pickering, North Yorkshire.
A specialist in creating functional and decorative pieces of silverware using hand piercing (sawing), Jen has previously completed high profile commissions including a tea light holder depicting a skyline including Buckingham Palace, Sheffield Town Hall and Sheffield Cathedral for the Lord Mayor of Sheffield, which was presented to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
The 2026 Betfred St Leger trophy centre will combine images of the significant buildings of Doncaster with the excitement of horses racing to the Winning Post along with the Yorkshire rose.
To further celebrate the history and popularity of the Betfred St Leger Festival to the local community, Doncaster Racecourse is proud to introduce the ‘Leger 250 Community Groups Initiative’ for 2026. This fundraising initiative will be open to 250 local charities and community groups to purchase 25 tickets for Betfred St Leger Saturday at a reduced rate of £17.76 each.
The groups will be entitled to sell these tickets on to members or supporters for £25 each. Any group that sells all 25 tickets will be entitled to a top up from Doncaster Racecourse to a total of £250 of funds raised.
Executive Director of Doncaster Racecourse, Rachel Harwood, said “The Betfred St Leger Stakes and the wider Festival are icons of both the sport of horseracing and for the City of Doncaster also.”
“As the World’s oldest Classic, the roll of honour for the race features some of the sport’s greatest names across trainers, jockeys, owners and, of course, the equine champions themselves.
“Our aim for 2026, the 250th anniversary of the great race, is to celebrate both its history whilst also looking forward. We want to build on the successes of recent years and continue to offer a compelling and attractive four days of racing for both established fans of the sport and newcomers alike.
“Equally, we want to make sure that we continue to use our position within the City to support as many local organisations as we can and make sure that they can benefit from the celebrations also.”
Mayor of Doncaster, Ros Jones, said, “The St Leger Stakes is the oldest and longest of Britain’s Classics. For generations, horseracing has been part of Doncaster’s story, over time this has helped put Doncaster firmly on the national and international map.”
“As we mark this 250th anniversary we celebrate not only a remarkable sporting tradition but a place that has played such an important role in our City for centuries.”
