Press release from FEI

No less than 18 organisers from Europe, North America and the Middle East have submitted bids to host one of the five qualifiers and final of the newly created Longines League of NationsTM, which will launch in 2024. 

The month-long bid process, which began on 22 May and concluded on 23 June, was for the 2024, 2025, 2026 and 2027 seasons and proved very successful. It attracted a strong response from existing and new organisers confirming the importance of the prestigious series. 

“We are delighted with the level of interest the newly established Longines League of Nations has attracted,” FEI Secretary General Sabrina Ibáñez said. “We are thrilled to have received such enthusiastic feedback from many of the world’s best organisers but are well aware of how challenging it will be to make a choice given the outstanding quality of all the bids. We will take our responsibility to select the most suitable hosts for world’s best series in team Jumping. I would like to thank all the bidders for embracing the new concept so willingly and for their hard work. Our sincerest thanks go also to the FEI’s Top Partner Longines for their confidence and commitment.” 

In the coming days, the FEI Headquarters will consult with the relevant National Federations, send out the Host Agreement to each of the bidders, clarify any outstanding questions, and go through a comprehensive evaluation process, including a thorough technical assessment by the FEI Jumping Committee. Based on the evaluation and upon the receipt of the signed host agreements, a recommendation will be made to the FEI Board, who will make a final decision on the allocation at its teleconference on 18 July. 

The following deadlines will be applied for the review of the bids and allocation of the five qualifiers and final: 

June 2023

• Bid Application shared with the National Federation of the Organiser. Consultation process with NF as per the Allocation of FEI Named-Events Policy.
• Host Agreement sent to all Organising Committees (OCs) who submitted an application.

June – July 2023 

• Evaluation of Bids by the FEI Headquarters and FEI Jumping Committee. FEI consultation with the relevant NFs. 
• Recommendation to the FEI Board.

Friday, 14 July 2023 

• Deadline for applicants to send back a signed version of the Host Agreement.

Tuesday, 18 July 

• The FEI Board will allocate the Longines League of NationsTM qualifiers and final during the Board teleconference scheduled to take place on 18 July 2023. In principle, allocations will be made on a four-season basis (2024 – 2027).

Monday, 31 July (in principle) 

• Finalisation of CSI(O)5* Calendar for 2024 (as per FEI General Regulations, Annex K, para 1.3)

The Longines League of Nations was created following a six-month consultation phase with a dedicated Task Force, which was set up to review and redefine the iconic Nations Cup series and included all the key equestrian stakeholders. It will give a fresh start for the century-old equestrian team series and will see a full makeover starting in 2024.

The new series will feature a unified and global format, where the top 10 nations compete at five 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. 

The rules for Longines League of  NationsTM 2024 were approved by the FEI Board at its in-person meeting on 6 and 7 June and are available here.