Inaugurated 1840 Sponsor Qatar Distance 6f (1,207 metres) | Race type Flat / Thoroughbred Website Goodwood Weight Handicap | |
Location Goodwood Racecourse
W. Sussex, England | ||
The Stewards' Cup is a flat handicap horse race in Great Britain open to hoses aged three years or older. It is run at Goodwood over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in late July or early August.
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History
For several years in the 1830s the senior steward at Goodwood presented an annual cup to the winner of any race of his choosing. The choice varied each year, and the trophy was awarded for events with distances of up to 1½ miles. A perpetual race for the Stewards' Cup over a sprint distance of 6 furlongs was conceived by Lord George Bentinck in late 1839, and the inaugural running took place the following summer.
The first commercial sponsor of the Stewards' Cup was Spillers, a company associated with the race from 1970 to 1980. The event was backed by the Tote in 1981, and by William Hill from 1982 to 1992.
The race was formerly held on the opening day of the five-day Glorious Goodwood meeting. It was moved to the final day in 1993, and from this point it was sponsored by Vodafone. The sponsorship was taken over by Blue Square in 2007, and in 2013 the race was sponsored by Robins Farm Racing. In 2014 Goodwood announced that 32Red would take over the sponsorship and the race would lose its historic title, being run as the 32Red Cup. The 2015 running was sponsored by Qatar and the name reverted to the Stewards' Cup.