The Mars Badminton Horse Trials will award a record £125,000 to its 2026 winner, an increase of £7,400 from last year. The total prize pot stands at £451,500 for the five-star competition. Prize money for the top 20 finishers depends on the number of starters, with figures based on 80 participants.
The Badminton Horse Trials, one of the premier events in eventing, draws top riders from around the world. Organizers have set the winner's prize at £125,000, the highest in the sport's history. This marks a significant rise from 1976, when the top prize was £1,000, and from 2017, when it first reached six figures. The overall purse of £451,500 is up for grabs in the main competition, with additional awards for special categories, such as £1,000 to the winning horse's groom last year. Proposed prizes for the top 20 are scaled according to starter numbers, assuming 80 entrants for calculations. Prize money has also risen for the British Eventing LeMieux Grassroots Championships. The BE100 champion will receive £750, up from £600 last year, while the BE90 winner gets £700.
