The FEI Board has unanimously confirmed the allocation of the Qualifiers and Final of the Longines League of Nations™ for the 2024, 2025, 2026, and 2027 seasons to venues across Europe, North America, and the Middle East.
The Longines League of Nations™ venues for the 2024 – 2027 seasons will be as follows:
Qualifiers:
CSIO5* Abu Dhabi (UAE)
CSIO5* Ocala, FL (USA)
CSIO5* St Gallen (SUI)
CSIO5* Rotterdam (NED)
Final: CSIO5* Barcelona (ESP)
The allocations were made further to a bid process, which began on 22 May, with extensive consultation between the FEI, the bidding Organisers and their National Federations in accordance with the Allocation of FEI Named-Events Policy.
The FEI Headquarters and the FEI Jumping Committee reviewed the bids and presented their recommendations to the FEI Board. Longines, the FEI’s Top Partner and Title Sponsor of the new Series, who has committed to a very significant financial contribution, was consulted throughout the entire process.
“We have made a historic decision for the future of equestrian sport,” FEI President Ingmar De Vos said. “This series is about inspiring individuals and nations around the core values of our sport – camaraderie, team spirit, horsemanship and excellence – and for over a century it has played an invaluable role in the development of equestrian globally.
“We were very pleased with the large number of organisers eager to host a Longines League of Nations event in the coming seasons.
“We undertook the task of selecting the events with great responsibility and I believe we have made a difficult but fair choice, striking a good balance between continuity and evolution. This fresh and exciting Series gives us the opportunity to display the very best of team equestrian sport to large audiences in key territories and we are looking forward to working closely with these Organisers to continue the Nations Cup legacy and inspire future generations of equestrians.
“Due to the quantity of bids received, which illustrated the appetite for the new Series, there were difficult decisions to be made. We knew from the start that we would be unable to accommodate all of the organisers, who have made tremendous contributions to the FEI Nations Cup series in the past. We will always be grateful to them and wish them every success for the future.
“Our work is far from finished. It is only just beginning with the next phases focussing on logistics, branding, and promotion to prepare for the inaugural season of the new Series.
“I would like to thank all the organising committees for their dedication and hard work in submitting such impressive applications and to congratulate the winning bidders. Our very special appreciation goes to Longines, the FEI’s top partner, for their trust and their unwavering support to equestrian sport,” President De Vos concluded.
“The Board allocated four Qualifiers for this global series in three regions – two Qualifiers in Europe, one in North America, and one in the Middle East,” FEI Secretary General Sabrina Ibáñez commented. “Although we originally planned to have five Qualifiers, we were mindful that next year will be particularly busy with the Paris 2024 Olympic Games taking place from 26 July to 11 August. Having four Qualifiers keeps the calendar reasonable and allows athletes, horses, and chefs d’équipe to manage horsepower and still have enough time to train, compete, and prepare for the Olympic Games.
“The Final across the upcoming four seasons will go to Barcelona, an iconic Olympic venue, which has hosted International Jumping Competitions for 111 years and which will welcome this year’s final for the 10th consecutive time in October.
“During the inaugural Longines League of Nations season in 2024, we will evaluate the new concept and together with Longines and the FEI Jumping Committee, we will work towards adding a fifth qualifier in the following seasons.”
“The Longines League of Nations is an exciting new Series, the revamped heir to historical team equestrian competitions going back well over a century,” Matthias Breschan, CEO of Longines, said. “Its rich past and dynamic new format fit well with Longines’ values encompassing tradition, modernity and excellence and it is a great honour for our brand to partner with it. We look forward to a thrilling season as the Series travels around the world.”
The new series will feature a unified and global format, where the top 10 nations compete at four top venues in order to qualify for a Final where the best eight teams go head-to-head to be crowned the Longines League of NationsTM Champion.
The format, which was approved unanimously by the FEI Jumping Committee, will be unique to the Longines League of NationsTM. It consists of two rounds, whereby in the first round, all four athletes from all 10 teams (and potentially the host nation) participate with the three best scores to count, followed by a second round where the best eight teams compete in reverse order – carrying forward their penalties from the first round – however with only three athletes per team and no drop score.
The same format will be applied for the Longines League of NationsTM Final with all eight teams qualified competing across both rounds with only three riders and no drop score in the second round.