| Wednesday, October 21, 2026 | Contact: Shannon Luce 859.224.2716 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Jockey Club Releases 2026 Live Foal Statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Jockey Club today announced that 16,100 live foals have been reported for 2026 through October 14. That figure represents approximately 85% - 90% of the total number of foals expected to be reported for the year. The 2026 breeding statistics are available alphabetically by stallion name through the online Fact Book on The Jockey Club website at jockeyclub.com. Breeders who have not submitted their Live Foal Reports are encouraged to do so to obtain a Registration Application and DNA-typing kit. The following table shows the 10 states and provinces with the most mares covered in 2025 sorted by number of state/province-sired live foals of 2026 reported through October 14, 2026.
In total for 2025, 1,015 stallions covered 26,024 mares in North America. The statistics include 229 foals of stallions standing in North America but foaled abroad, as reported by foreign stud book authorities at the time of publication. The report also includes 52 mares bred to 18 stallions in North America on Southern Hemisphere time; the majority of these mares have not foaled. The Jockey Club Insights: What the 2026 Breeding Numbers Tell Us The 2026 foal count is preliminary. Through October 14, 16,100 live foals had been reported, representing about 85% - 90% of the expected total. The count should rise materially as more reports arrive. Excluding Kentucky, several states and provinces by the area of conception (based on where the reported stallion stood) reported fewer foals. Across the top 10 areas by 2025 Mares Bred, the 2026 count was down 5.3%. Excluding Kentucky, the other nine areas were down 12.5%. New Mexico, California, Florida, Maryland, and Ontario had the steepest declines. The trend is not uniform. Louisiana reported an increase of 10.9%, Pennsylvania was nearly flat at 0.5%, and New York was close to flat at −1.7%. These results reinforce the importance of strengthening regional breeding programs. North American stallions have progeny foaled abroad. The release reports 229 foals by North American stallions born abroad to exported mares, led by Japan and Saudi Arabia with 45 each, South Korea with 41, and Ireland with 28. Plan of Action. The Jockey Club is working with state and provincial breeding organizations to identify practical ways to strengthen regional programs and support breeder participation. The second annual breeder workshop, co-hosted with the Thoroughbred Owners and Breeders Association and scheduled for Thursday, December 10, in Tucson, Arizona, will bring regional program representatives together to discuss successful program initiatives, collaboration among jurisdictions, and practical approaches to horse husbandry and reproductive care. For more information, interested parties can contact Najja Thompson, who will join The Jockey Club as director of State Breeder and Provincial Programs on October 28, at contactus@jockeyclub.com. The Jockey Club, founded in 1894 and dedicated to the improvement of Thoroughbred breeding and racing, is the breed registry for Thoroughbreds in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. In fulfillment of its mission, The Jockey Club provides support and leadership on a wide range of important industry initiatives, and directly or through subsidiaries, it serves the information and technology needs of the sport of Thoroughbred racing. Among its many supported initiatives are America’s Best Racing (americasbestracing.net), OwnerView (ownerview.com), and the Thoroughbred Incentive Program (tjctip.com). Additional information is available at jockeyclub.com. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||