Inside London’s most exclusive thoroughbred sale – where horses change hands for millions

The Goffs London Sale has in recent years become the most exclusive curtain raiser in town as well as one of the most prestigious sales of thoroughbreds in the world

THE GREAT and the good of global horse racing gathered in the grand surroundings of Kensington Palace Gardens yesterday ahead of this week’s Royal Ascot meeting.

The Goffs London Sale has in recent years become the most exclusive curtain raiser in town as well as one of the most prestigious sales of thoroughbreds in the world.

And yesterday saw a bumper purchase price for Sparkling Plenty – which won the Group 1 Prix de Diane race just 24 hours beforehand.

The 3-year-old eventually sold for an extraordinary £5m in a breathless auction overseen by Goffs’ chief executive Henry Beeby.

The other ‘star’ sale was a two-year-old bay filly which sold for £650,000, the thoroughbred itself being present as luminaries of the turf decided whose colours it would run in.

Hamish Macauley and Amo Racing won the sun-bathed auction.

Uniquely, the Goffs sale allows buyers to secure ownership of a number of thoroughbreds racing at Ascot over the succeeding days.

“People from across the globe are at the sale and are buzzing with excitement for the week ahead. What sets our event apart is that the majority of horses for sale are entered to run at Royal Ascot, meaning you can come to the sale on Monday, purchase a horse, and be standing alongside the Royal family in the Ascot parade ring as an owner less than 24 hours later. I think racing is unique in that it can offer immediate access to the top level of the sport,” Beeby told City A.M.

Attendees include representatives from the biggest names in horse racing from Godolphin to leading trainers such as Aidan O’Brien, John and Thady Gosden, Andrew Balding, and famous Australian trainer Gai Waterhouse.

Beeby told City A.M. that ‘ten years ago people in racing were talking about whether a thoroughbred auction in London could ever be possible. We’re all about innovation at Goffs so we picked up the idea and ran with it.

“Firstly, we identified that the best date would be the eve of Royal Ascot when all the major international racehorse buyers are gathered in central London.

“We then set about finding a location, which turned out to be the iconic Orangery at Kensington Palace. When the Orangery closed for renovations in 2017, we moved across the walkway to Kensington Palace Gardens which is where we still are today.”

Other sales included £300,000 for Rock Hunter, which has an entry for today’s Norfolk Stakes, and £650,000 for a daughter of the well-loved flat race legend Kingman.

Royal Ascot begins later today.