The Curragh and Dubai Duty Free have today announced an extension of their partnership, which includes title sponsorship of the Irish Derby and five additional races on the day.
Dubai Duty Free, one of the world’s leading airport retailers, has been the title sponsor of Ireland’s premier classic race since 2008 and puts the classic very much on the global map.
In 2023 the Derby will also revert to a Sunday date for the first time since 2011, taking place on Sunday, July 2.
Prize money for the Group 1 Classic will increase from €1 million to €1.25 million in 2023.
Worldwide viewership of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby will be significantly enhanced by the full eight-race programme becoming part of the Tote World Pool for the first time next year.
Tote World Pool is an exciting initiative that was introduced in 2019 whereby global tote operators operate a single pool on several major international race meetings.
It has been agreed with the Hong Kong Jockey Club that from next year the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby Day will become a permanent fixture as a Tote World Pool event.
Terrestrial TV coverage of the race will also include live broadcasts by both RTE and ITV.
The partnership extends beyond the sponsorship and in addition to the racing, The Curragh and Dubai Duty Free will work together to deliver an exciting Festival with something for everybody, including live music, style awards, food village and much more.
“Sports sponsorship has long been part of Dubai Duty-Free’s marketing strategy and our title sponsorship of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby is in line with our global strategy of promoting both our own duty-free brand and the city of Dubai itself,” said Dubai Duty Free Executive Vice Chairman & CEO, Colm McLoughlin.
“We are pleased with the level of exposure that we continue to generate from this event and being a Tote World Pool event will significantly enhance the global viewership.”
“We have successfully sponsored the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby for the past 15 years and we are happy to extend our sponsorship, with an increase in prize money, and look forward to working with The Curragh to grow this event even further.”
“Dubai Duty Free have been much valued partners of the Curragh since 2002, when they sponsored the Anglesey Stakes, and are a pleasure to work with,” added Curragh CEO Brian Kavanagh.
“We are delighted to announce this extension to the Derby sponsorship and the increase in prizemoney for the Derby itself. We are also very pleased that Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby Day has been selected as a Tote World Pool event and excited about the switch back to a Sunday which will allow the three-day Festival to build up to its feature race.”
“We are very grateful to Colm McLoughlin, Sinéad El Sibai and all the team at Dubai Duty Free for their continued support of the Curragh, Irish racing as well as local charities.”
