Dates for the 2011-2012 Season:

In addition to offering the world’s richest day in racing, Meydan annually offers racing from November until the last Saturday in March when racing hosts a spectacular closing event, the Dubai World Cup. The season is split into three parts: Racing at Meydan, the Dubai World Cup Carnival and the Dubai World Cup race meeting.

The five-month season will begin November 10, 2011 with “Racing at Meydan” a showcase of five race meetings spread over November and December. The race meetings are designed to promote the local talent and rising stars of the UAE and are regarded as a stepping stone into the premier league – the prestigious Dubai World Cup Carnival (DWCC).

The Dubai World Cup Carnival (DWCC) will be begin January 5, 2012 and concludes on March 31 with the Dubai World Cup programme. Developed in 2004 as a means to further develop the growth and success of racing in the UAE and Dubai, the DWCC annually attracts some of the finest horses in the world. There will be 16 DWCC race meetings during the three month span, including the Dubai World Cup.

Renamed the Dubai World Cup Carnival in 2011, the season is a truly pioneering festival and has successfully attracted the brightest stars of the international horseracing community. Horsemen from around the world come to race and enjoy the prestige and luxury of competing at Meydan Racecourse. As a result, Dubai now enjoys a world-wide reputation for quality racing and an international audience that follows the spectacle and excitement of the finest horseracing.

The Dubai World Cup Carnival at Meydan has fantastic global appeal and annually attracts the highest level of runners from all over the world - Great Britain, the United States of America, Japan, France, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Australia and Hong Kong to name a few.

The Dubai World Cup, recognized as the “world’s richest day in racing” will showcase nine races for the first time in 2012. Featuring three of the most valuable races: the US$5 million Dubai Sheema Classic, sponsored by Longines, the US$5 million Dubai Duty Free, sponsored by Dubai Duty Free and the famed US$10million Dubai World Cup, sponsored by Emirates Airlines, those events are all Group One status and are joined by Dubai Golden Shaheen, sponsored by Gulf News, Al Quoz Sprint, sponsored by Emirates NBD and the Dubai Kahayla Classic for Purebred Arabians and sponsored by Emaar.

Additionally, there are the Group Two UAE Derby, sponsored by Al Naboodah, the Group Two Godolphin Mile, sponsored by Etisalat, and for the first time, the Dubai Gold Cup will join the programme as a 3,200 metre Group Three turf event with a purse of US$1 million.