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The Twentieth

Northern Ireland Festival

Is scheduled to take place from Friday 1st to Sunday 3rd May 2026 at Cavan International Equestrian Centre

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Discover our 2026

Sponsorship Opportunities

From show catalogue advertising to ring sponsorship, championship sponsor or booking a trade stand. We have options to suit all budgets.

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Run a NIF Working Hunter

Qualifying Show

Simple, free and fast sign up process to run a Festival Working Hunter qualifying show. Choose which classes you would like to run.

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ENTER A CLASS

You can enter almost any class at the Northern Ireland Festival. The only exceptions being classes 401-415 where you need to pre-qualify.

SHOW RULES

Click Here to view the General Show rules, the Class Specific Rules, the Jumping Fence Heights and the Horse and Pony Breed Criteria Specifications.

SPONSORSHIP OPTIONS

Sponsor a Championship, get a ring named after you or your company, book a trade stand or place an advertisement in the next show catalogue.

RUN A QUALIFIER

Apply to run a Northern Ireland Festival working hunter qualifying show. Simple, free sign up process. Choose which classes you wish to run.

WHAT IS NIF?

The Northern Ireland Festival is the largest annual horse and pony show on the island of Ireland. The three day show takes place at Cavan International Equestrian Centre.

NORTHERN IRELAND FESTIVAL

Established in 2005, the Northern Ireland Festival has become a firm favourite with competitors and many return year after year. This annual ‘equestrian holiday’ offers a diverse range of jumping and showing classes for a wide variety of horses and ponies.

    • Three day show with three ‘black tie’ indoor evening performances.
    • Six rings operating throughout the weekend on superb all weather surfaces.
    • All the judges are recruited from the Great Britain mainland.
    • Includes NI Festival Working Hunter championship finals and HOYS qualifiers.

NIF Facts

Take a look at the Northern Ireland Festival in numbers.

Classes

170

+

Championships

55

+

Entries

2200

+

Prize Money

12000

+

Latest NIF News

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Timetable with Judges Now Available

The finalised timetable with judges is now available at: Schedule and Class Specific Rules – Northern Ireland Festival Please note we are waiting for confirmation from HOYS regarding the judges on some of their qualifiers. These will be added once approved.

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Dublin Horse Show Qualifier 2026

Class 21, the Open Racehorse to Riding Horse, will be a qualifier for Dublin Horse Show, which runs from 5th to 9th August 2026. The winner of this class will receive an invitation to compete at the prestigious five day show.

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Veteran Horse of the Year Qualifier

Our Veteran Ridden Horses and Ponies Championship (Ch 32 – Saturday 2nd May) is a Golden Ticket qualifier for the Veteran Horse Society National Championships to be held at Arena UK, Lincolnshire from 4th – 6th September 2026. The Champion and Reserve will be…

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