Racecourse Association launches 2026 Showcase

The Racecourse Association (RCA) is pleased to launch the 2026 Showcase to celebrate excellence and innovation across British racecourses during the past year.

The Showcase is the RCA’s marquee event celebrating best practice from across the racecourses of Britian, and this year it will take place on Thursday 19th November. The RCA is proud to be joined by Great British Racing (GBR), Racing Together, Racing Foundation and Future Ticketing as headline partners for the event.

The ultimate celebration of the best of British racecourses from the past 12 months, the Showcase Awards consist of eight core categories covering all elements of raceday experience. In addition, three Showcase + Awards are on offer to bring in the views of racehorse owners and racegoers, and to celebrate the racecourses that have engaged most with the industry’s Project Beacon work.

Each of the core submissions will be assessed by an expert, independent judging panel. For 2026, the confirmed judges so far are:

• Angie Fowler, Visitor Experience & Industry Engagement Manager, The Royal Yacht Britannia
• David Carr, Racing Reporter, Racing Post
• Aileen Goatley, Head of Marketing, Horse Racing Ireland
• Kate Freeman, Head of Ownership, Racehorse Owners Association

More information on this year’s event, categories and judging panel can be found in our Showcase Companion Guide here.

New for 2026, the Showcase + Award, Best of Beacon, will champion racecourses that have engaged with the Jobs to be Done (JTBD) from the industry’s Project Beacon. Racecourses will be invited to submit any initiative they have introduced that addresses one or more of the JTBD, points will be allocated to any valid submission with bonus points being decided by an industry panel comprised of representatives from GBR, the British Horseracing Authority and Flutter Entertainment.

The RCA is pleased to once again be working with a range of industry partners to further the Showcase. The winner of the Racing Together Community Award will have the opportunity to work with the organisation to produce a video case study of the successful initiative. The Racing Foundation is again supporting the Racing Foundation Green Award, which this year will be closely aligned to Racing Resilient, the environmental strategy for British racing.

The racing public will have the opportunity to celebrate the racecourse they think delivers the best customer experience, value for money and overall raceday experience via the Racing Post Readers’ Award. In addition, the Owner’s Racecourse of the Year, in partnership with the Racehorse Owners Association will ask owners to voice their opinion on which racecourse provides the best ownership experiences.

Paul Swain, Head of Raceday Experience and Communications at the RCA said: “Now in its 15th year, the Showcase is the ultimate celebration of British racecourses and the hard work put in behind-the-scenes by racecourse teams to welcome millions of racegoers and owners each year.

“2025 was a record-breaking year for Showcase in terms of submissions and we look forward to carrying this momentum into 2026.

“I am grateful to the support of our partners, Great British Racing, Racing Together, Racing Foundation and Future Ticketing, without which we would not be able to host this celebration of British racecourses.”