In case you hadn’t noticed last year’s FEI World Cup finals in Saudi Arabia, or last month’s Longines League of Nations leg in Abu Dhabi, the Middle East is playing an ever-larger role in high-level non-racing equestrian sport.
Now a 10 million Euro (U.S. $10,541,000) tour, the largest equestrian sporting event in the region, has been announced by the Qatar Equestrian Federation and the Al Shaqab facility. Doha already hosted top show jumping, but this will be the largest equestrian sporting event when its 10 international events run Jan. 1-April 4, 2026.
It starts with the HH The Father Amir Tour, including four new five-star championships over four weeks. That will be followed by: HH The Amir’s Sword Festival, CHI Al Shaqab, Longines Global Champions Tour and Doha Equestrian Tour 2026. Although show jumping is hte focus, plans also call for inclusion of dressage and para-dressage competition.
Bader bin Mohammed al-Darwish, president of the Qatar Equestrian Federation, and vice-chairman of the Organizing Committee for International Equestrian Championships – Qatar 2025, said: “The events (in the new Qatar Equestrian Tour 2026) will make the global equestrian calendar full of competitions that will further enhance the status of Qatar as a sports capital and an ideal destination to host the largest and most important international equestrian tournaments, and a meeting place for the exchange of different cultures for horse lovers and equestrian.”
He added, “We believe that our sports facilities, where the season’s competitions are held, will be the focus of the world’s attention, and will contribute to accelerating and enhancing the growth of equestrian sports at the regional and global levels.”
The ultimate goal?
“We aspire to be the world’s premier destination for equestrian sports, and to continue to provide a role model in hosting major sporting events, especially in the field of equestrianism.”
The organizers are implementing “the highest levels” of security and safety measures in all sports facilities.