Wednesday 9th April – Joint press release from The Jockey Club & Coral

Prize money for the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown Park on Saturday 5th July 2025 has been increased to a record £1 million making it the most valuable race ever staged at the racecourse.

The Group One contest, run over a mile and a quarter, is one of the most prestigious races in the British Flat racing calendar and regularly attracts a top-class line up of three-year-olds and older horses.

As part of the increased investment, the 2025 Coral-Eclipse will also include two wildcard entries for the winners of the Prix du Jockey Club and Prix de Diane, both run at Chantilly, France, in June, further enhancing its appeal to leading contenders from across Europe.     

The prize money increase is the result of an enhanced partnership between Coral and The Jockey Club and reflects a shared ambition to further elevate the status of this historic race.

The Coral-Eclipse was first run in 1886 and is Britain’s first major all-aged Group One of the season. It has previously been won by some of the sport’s greats including in recent years Sea The Stars, Golden Horn and Enable. As recently as last year, the Coral-Eclipse winner City Of Troy was named the world’s joint-best racehorse of 2024 in the Longines World's Best Racehorse Rankings.

Coral first sponsored the Eclipse in 1976, with the 2025 running being the 50th to be staged under the Coral banner.

Entries for the 2025 Coral-Eclipse will be revealed on Tuesday 6th May.

Irish trainer Aidan O’Brien, who has saddled the winner of the Coral-Eclipse on a record eight occasions including with City Of Troy in 2024, said: “The Coral-Eclipse is a very prestigious race and we are very much looking forward to this year’s running of the race at Sandown Park.

“The Coral-Eclipse is the first time in the season when three-year-olds meet older horses over a mile and a quarter, it’s a very informative race for the rest of the season going forward. It’s always a very hard race to win, it’s very important to any horse that wins it - either a colt or a filly.

“Coral’s 50-year sponsorship of the Eclipse has been incredible - it is so important to the race and a great testimony to the very longstanding commitment to racing.”

Nemone Routh, Director & French Racing Manager for Aga Khan Studs, said: “After Vadeni’s easy five-length win in the Prix du Jockey Club, the Coral-Eclipse felt like a natural next step.

“The prize money is certainly attractive, the timing and distance are ideal, and the race offers to a top French three-year-old, or older horse, the chance to prove their potential on an international stage against elite horses.

“We had a great experience (in 2022), which was enhanced by Vadeni’s brilliant performance against a field comprising of only Group One winners. It allowed his talent to be shown to a wider, international audience which helped his stallion career once he was retired to stud.

“The availability of a wild card entry would certainly make the process easier and encourage connections of French trained runners to consider this prestigious race.”

Simon Clare, PR Director for Coral, said: “The Coral-Eclipse is one of the most prestigious Flat races in the world and we are incredibly proud of our long-standing association with the race.

“This is the longest running Group race sponsorship in the world, and this year we are thrilled to be celebrating the 50th year of our patronage of the race, which began back in 1976.

“The prize money increase to £1 million is another landmark moment for the race, a race which remains firmly at the forefront of the minds of leading trainers, owners and breeders, and which continues to stand the test of time.”

Sarah Drabwell, General Manager at Sandown Park Racecourse, said: “With Sandown Park celebrating its 150th birthday in 2025, it is tremendous news that we will be able to stage our first £1-million race in this milestone year.

“I would like to extend huge thanks to Coral for helping to bring this about and for its longstanding and enthusiastic sponsorship of the Eclipse, which is the longest of any Group One race in the world.”