2025 Breeders’ Cup
When: 9:30 a.m. Friday and 8 a.m. Saturday.
Where: Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd.
TV: Friday, airs on USA Network. On Saturday, races air on USA and NBC. They stream on Peacock both days.
Other viewing options: FanDuel TV will present live, continuous coverage of every championship and undercard race. All-day live coverage both Friday and Saturday will be available on the Breeders’ Cup Facebook, X and YouTube channels.
The 2017 Breeders’ Cup World Championships at Del Mar Racing Club. (File photo by Jamey Price/Eclipse Sportswire/Breeders Cup)
Fall is typically a time when tourism in the San Diego region begins to slow. But thanks to the Breeders’ Cup, which starts Friday in Del Mar, the region is receiving a major jolt both economically and in global exposure.
The Breeders’ Cup, known as the Super Bowl of horse racing, is expected to generate at least $150 million for the regional economy, according to economists and financial analysts cited by the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club’s Vice President of Finance Mike Ernst.
So while all eyes will be on a two-day field that includes Sierra Leone, Fierceness and Journalism – Kentucky Derby and Belmont Stakes winner Sovereignty, however, has been scratched and will not run due to a fever – hotel owners, restauranteurs and more will be counting the cash as it rolls in during the championships.
The $150 million figure includes spending by out-of-town visitors – some from around the globe – participants, global media and more over the two days of racing. A substantial portion of that flows into local and regional hotels, short-term rental properties and other entertainment venues, and also to various local service providers, from caterers to florists to furniture rentals.
In addition, the Breeders’ Cup, an international event, is broadcast in more than 180 countries, exposing millions of horse racing fans across the globe to coastal San Diego’s scenery and culture.
The 2024 edition of the Cup delivered a significant boost to not just to Del Mar, but the surrounding area, with attendance of over 67,000.
The Breeders’ Cup is in Del Mar for the second consecutive year, a rarity for the event, which is also run at Santa Anita Park near Los Angeles and Keeneland in Lexington, Kentucky.
Since 2017 – the first time Del Mar hosted the races – the event has been held here four times, compared to just twice for Santa Anita and Keeneland, and once at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.
In 2024, about $34 million in purses and awards was paid out during the two days of races, according to Del Mar Thoroughbred Club President Josh Rubinstein.
But that amount is but a fraction of the millions bet last year, when the event set a wagering record of $203.7 million, Breeders’ Cup officials said.
The Del Mar racetrack also benefits on the “shoulder days” surrounding the Breeders’ Cup, when heightened attendance elevates race revenues. Trainers and horse owners from across the country are known to schedule horses around the championship dates.
In addition, horses bred in a record 13 countries are entered this year. In all, 55 horses from abroad are expected to race Friday and Saturday, out of a total of 177 entries, according to the Breeders’ Cup.
Tickets, starting at $80, remain available on the event website.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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