Glorious Goodwood: How the Festival Came to Be

Five days. The South Downs as a backdrop. Horses, history and the kind of atmosphere that Edward VII once described as "a garden party with racing tacked on". Glorious Goodwood is one of British flat racing's defining occasions, and with the 2026 Qatar Goodwood Festival running from 28 July to 1 August, the board is set.

Whether you're new to Goodwood or a returning regular, this guide covers the history of the event, the key races, what horse racing markets are available and how Goodwood compares with the other major fixtures in the flat racing calendar.

When and where: 2026 Goodwood Festival

Dates: 28 July – 1 August 2026.

Venue: Goodwood Racecourse, Chichester, West Sussex.

Days of racing: five days.

Type: flat racing

Group 1 races: 3 (Goodwood Cup, Sussex Stakes, Nassau Stakes)

The five days of the festival

Tuesday 28 July - Goodwood Cup Day

The festival opens with the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup, a Group 1 staying race and one of the oldest races on the flat racing calendar. A full card follows, with an annual cricket match between Lord March's Racing XI and the Sussex Foundation XI rounding off the evening.

Wednesday 29 July - Sussex Stakes Day

The Visit Qatar Sussex Stakes is Goodwood's race of champions – a Group 1 mile race that has attracted the sport's finest horses year after year. Past winners include Frankel and Solow.

Thursday 30 July - Ladies' Day

The social centrepiece of the festival. The Markel Magnolia Cup kicks things off with 12 female riders racing down Goodwood's famous home straight, before the Group 1 Qatar Nassau Stakes - one of the season's top races for fillies and mares - takes place.

Friday 31 July - King George Day

Day four features the Group 2 King George Qatar Stakes, the Golden Mile and the Group 3 Bonhams Thoroughbred Stakes for a strong card heading into the weekend.

Saturday 1 August - Stewards' Cup Day

The festival closes with the Stewards' Cup, one of the most competitive handicaps of the flat racing season. A fitting finale to five days of exceptional racing.

Why is it called 'Glorious Goodwood'?

The name came from the press. During the nineteenth century, as the summer meeting at Goodwood grew in prestige and attracted royalty, society and the finest horses in training, journalists reached for the most fitting adjective they could find. It stuck, and it's been Glorious Goodwood ever since.

The story begins in 1801, when the third Duke of Richmond opened the land known as The Harroway, a narrow ridge on top of the South Downs, to the officers of the Sussex Militia for a private race meeting.

The officers had previously held their annual races at Petworth Park, but when that invitation was withdrawn, the Duke stepped in. The private meeting was so successful that public racing followed the very next year, in 1802, and Goodwood has been hosting race meetings since then.

The setting played its part in the 'glorious' label too. The South Downs provide a natural amphitheatre, with panoramic views over the West Sussex countryside that are unlike anything else in British racing. The atmosphere has always been as important as the sport itself, and that balance between elegance and action is what defines Goodwood.

The relaxed dress code is part of that identity, too. Edward VII himself helped shape it, arriving in a white silk top hat in 1904 when convention demanded black, and completing the transformation in 1906 with a lounge suit in place of the traditional morning dress. Bright colours followed, and the tradition of vivid, floral summer dressing at Goodwood has been royal-approved ever since.

Memorable moments and great races

The Goodwood Cup

First run in 1808, the Goodwood Cup is one of the oldest and most celebrated staying races on the flat calendar.

Few stories from its history are more remarkable than Kincsem, the Hungarian wonder horse who won the race in 1878 on the way to a staggering 54-race unbeaten career – a record that has never come close to being matched.

Double Trigger brought the Goodwood Cup back to the headlines in the 1990s, winning the race three times (1995, 1997, 1998) and making the journey from Yorkshire each time to do so.

The Sussex Stakes

Goodwood's flagship race has attracted the best milers in the world for over a century. Brigadier Gerard, one of the most celebrated racehorses of his generation, won the Sussex Stakes in 1971. But the race's most famous chapter belongs to Frankel - officially the highest-rated horse in the history of the turf - who won it in both 2011 and 2012, making him the only horse to have won it twice.

The Nassau Stakes

In 2006, Goodwood hosted what many consider the greatest fillies' race in the modern history of the sport.

Ouija Board, one of the superstars of international racing, faced the defending champion Alexandra Goldrun in the Group 1 Nassau Stakes. The two fought out an extraordinary duel down the famous Goodwood straight, with Ouija Board prevailing in the closest of photo finishes.

It's the kind of finish Goodwood has a habit of producing.

The Stewards' Cup

One of the most competitive handicap sprints of the entire season, the Stewards' Cup has been run at Goodwood since 1840 and remains one of the most keenly contested races in the calendar.

Its six-furlong distance and large fields make it one of the most unpredictable races of the summer, and one of the most closely watched.

Glorious Goodwood betting markets

MONOPOLY Casino & Sports carries betting markets across all five days of the Qatar Goodwood Festival. Here's what you can expect to find.

Win and each-way

The most straightforward horse racing bet. Back a horse to win, or back it each-way to cover both to win and to place. For large-field handicap races like the Stewards' Cup (max. 28 runners), each-way betting is popular given the competitive nature of the field and the number of horses in contention.

Race winner outright

Pre-race markets on the Group 1 races - the Goodwood Cup, Sussex Stakes and Nassau Stakes - are typically available well in advance of the festival, with ante-post prices on offer for the leading contenders.

To place

A bet on a horse to finish in the places, without needing to win. The number of places paid depends on the size of the field and the race conditions.

Forecast and reverse forecast

Predict which horses will finish first and second, either in the correct order (forecast) or in either order (reverse forecast). A more precise market than a win bet, reflecting the additional difficulty of calling the exact finishing order.

In-play markets

Live betting is available across Goodwood's races, with odds moving in real time as the race develops. Given the pace and variability of flat racing, in-play markets can shift quickly particularly in the sprints where the result is determined in under a minute.

Racing outcomes are determined by chance and no form of analysis changes that. Bet within your means, set a spend limit before you start and use the responsible gambling tools available in your MONOPOLY Casino & Sports account.

Goodwood vs. Cheltenham, Aintree and Ascot

Goodwood sits alongside Cheltenham, Aintree and Royal Ascot as one of the defining weeks in the British racing calendar, but each event has its own distinct character.

Glorious Goodwood

Flat racing on the South Downs. Summer festival atmosphere, garden party dress code, five days of top-quality racing across Group 1, Group 2 and competitive handicaps. The Sussex Stakes and Goodwood Cup are two highlight races.

Royal Ascot

Flat racing, June, Berkshire. The most formal of the summer festivals, with strict dress codes, Royal Procession and five days of racing that includes some of the sport's most prestigious Group 1 events. Higher ceremony, more structured occasion.

Cheltenham Festival

National Hunt racing, March, Gloucestershire. Jump racing's equivalent of Goodwood, with four days of championship-grade hurdle and chase races, centred on the Gold Cup. Defined by its Irish following and the famous Cheltenham roar.

Grand National Festival

National Hunt racing, April, Aintree, Liverpool. Three days headlined by the Grand National itself – the most famous jump race in the world and one of the most widely bet-on sporting events in Britain each year.

Where Cheltenham and Aintree belong to the winter and spring jump racing calendar, Goodwood and Ascot define the flat racing summer. Ascot tends toward the formal and ceremonial; Goodwood is its looser, more colourful counterpart. Same quality of racing, different register.

Betting on Glorious Goodwood at MONOPOLY Casino & Sports

Markets across all five days of the 2026 Qatar Goodwood Festival are available at MONOPOLY Casino & Sports, including win and each-way betting, ante-post markets on the Group 1 races and in-play options throughout the week.

The MONOPOLY Casino & Sports app is available on iOS and Android – download it, find your market and make your move.

Glorious Goodwood betting FAQs

When is Glorious Goodwood 2026?

The 2026 Goodwood Festival runs from Tuesday 28 July to Saturday 1 August at Goodwood Racecourse, Chichester, West Sussex.

What are the Group 1 races at Goodwood?

The festival has three Group 1 races: the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup on day one, the Visit Qatar Sussex Stakes on day two and the Qatar Nassau Stakes on day three (Ladies' Day).

What is the Stewards' Cup?

A prestigious six-furlong handicap sprint run on the final day of the festival. First held in 1840, it's one of the most hotly contested handicap races of the flat season, attracting large fields and carrying a considerable prize fund.

What is each-way betting in horse racing?

Two bets in one: a win bet and a place bet on the same horse. If the horse wins, both parts of the bet pay out. If it finishes in the places without winning, the place portion pays out at a fraction of the win odds.

Wander over to the MONOPOLY Casino & Sports blog and have a look at all the other sports betting articles we've got to offer. That's in addition to all of our online casino game spotlights and explainers.