As much as we love horse racing in the UK and are happy to attend race meetings virtually all year round, it is not the prevailing sport in the country. That honour goes to football.
Likewise, in Ireland, where Gaelic football and hurling dominate in terms of attendance and public interest, despite the fact that the Irish thoroughbred horse racing industry is worth an estimated €2.46 billion annually for the national economy.
Surprisingly, Hong Kong is one of the few territories where horse racing is the undisputed number one sport, and even in Australia, home to the Melbourne Cup and where horse racing prize money regularly exceeds A$800 million, sports fans engage more with Aussie Rules and Rugby.
So what about countries we don’t hear as much about in horse racing? How about Germany? After all, the Germans hold the record for Olympic team gold medals won in dressage. They have won the team event a staggering 13 times since 1928, most recently in 2016, so their love of horses is evident.
But does it translate to the racecourse?
Interestingly, German racing has delivered some world‑class moments. Names like Danedream, the brilliant filly who stormed to victory in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in 2011, or Monsun, the stallion whose bloodlines are now scattered through top European pedigrees, still carry real weight with racing fans.
German racecourses lean more into relaxed family days out, focusing on a handful of high‑class fixtures rather than a packed calendar.
It may not rival the UK or France for sheer volume, but when Germany does put on a big race, it tends to do it with style and substance.
Rennbahn Hoppegarten
Rennbahn Hoppegarten, on the eastern outskirts of Berlin, is Germany’s largest racecourse and one of its oldest sporting venues, with racing dating back more than 150 years.
The site covers more than 200 hectares, featuring a 2,350‑metre turf circuit with a 550‑metre, slightly uphill home straight and Germany’s only 1,400‑metre straight course, designed to provide fair galloping conditions for top‑class Thoroughbreds.
Hoppegarten has historically hosted some of the country’s most important races and, after privatisation in 2008, has been revitalised as a modern, privately owned track that now stages multiple black‑type events each season.
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Hoppegarten’s combination of heritage grandstands, extensive lawns and proximity to Berlin makes it a popular destination for large raceday crowds and non‑racing events alike, underlining its status as a national monument of German sport.
Deutsches Derby at Hamburg‑Horn
If Hoppegarten is the country’s great racing stage, the Deutsches Derby is its blue‑riband performance.
First run on 11 July 1869 at Hamburg‑Horn as the “Norddeutsches Derby” and modelled on the Epsom Derby, it quickly evolved into the “Deutsches Derby”, a 2,400‑metre Group 1 Flat race restricted to three‑year‑old Thoroughbreds.
Hamburg‑Horn, opened in the mid‑19th century, remains one of Germany’s most historic racecourses and can accommodate tens of thousands of spectators on Derby day.
Although war damage forced temporary relocations to venues such as Berlin‑Hoppegarten, Munich and Cologne in the 1940s, since 1948 the Hamburger Renn‑Club has once again been the permanent host, and the Derby is now the centrepiece of early‑July racing in Germany.
The Derby’s status rests on its “once‑in‑a‑lifetime” nature: a horse has only one opportunity, at three, to contest the race, making it the primary target for each generation of German‑bred middle‑distance colts and fillies.
For owners, trainers and jockeys, victory in the Deutsches Derby remains the pinnacle of domestic Flat racing, conferring lasting prestige on horses that often go on to shape the national breeding pool.
Germany and the Grand National
While Germany is not a jumps nation in the British or Irish sense, there has been intermittent German involvement in the Aintree Grand National, usually through wealthy owners buying proven chasers from across the Channel.
The earliest and most lavish of these efforts came from Baron E. Oppenheim, who purchased two dual Grand National winners, The Colonel and The Lamb, in a bid to repeat their success in his own colours.
Oppenheim acquired The Colonel after his wins in 1869 and 1870, and The Lamb after his second success in 1871, but both horses were burdened with higher weights by the time they ran for the Baron, limiting their impact.
In 1871 The Colonel, carrying 12st 8lb, finished eighth at Aintree, while The Lamb, raised to 12st 7lb in 1872, ran with credit to finish fourth rather than securing a third National victory.
Herr Oeschlaeger, another German owner, bought Martha, runner‑up in the 1878 National, keeping Irish amateur Tommy Beasley in the saddle for a third‑place finish in 1879 before winning the 1881 National with Woodbrook, only for that horse to succumb to illness the following year.
Perhaps the most persistent German challenge came from Prince Franz Hatzfeldt, who campaigned no fewer than eleven runners in six Nationals between 1904 and 1910.
After early failures with the faller Dearslyer, he finally found success in 1906 with Ascetic’s Silver, an Irish‑bred chaser trained by Aubrey Hastings, who scored by a comfortable ten lengths and remains the standout German‑owned Grand National winner.
A Quiet Dedication to the Sport
Taken together, Hoppegarten, Hamburg‑Horn and the Deutsches Derby show how German racing has carved out a distinctive identity, even while living in the shadow of football and the bigger racing nations.
Hoppegarten represents the grand stage; Hamburg‑Horn, meanwhile, is all about prestige. For three‑year‑olds lining up in the Deutsches Derby, it’s the once‑in‑a‑lifetime shot that defines a generation, much as Epsom does in Britain.
Set against that Flat‑racing backdrop, German involvement in the Aintree Grand National feels like a fascinating side‑story with only a handful of ambitious owners taking their chances in Britain’s most unpredictable marathon.
From Baron Oppenheim’s high‑priced stars to Prince Franz Hatzfeldt’s persistent raids, German success at Aintree has always depended on importing proven British and Irish steeplechasers rather than developing a homegrown jumping scene.
That contrast is what makes the story so appealing for Grand National fans. At home, Germany majors on carefully curated Flat fixtures and classic bloodlines; abroad, its colours have occasionally been carried to glory over Aintree’s fearsome fences.
Put simply, Germany doesn’t try to mirror Britain’s National Hunt culture, but when its owners have rolled the dice at Aintree, they’ve done so with ambition, deep pockets and a clear eye for a good horse.
