The National Thoroughbred Racing Association (NTRA) and Breeders’ Cup Limited combined effective January 1, 2001, ensuring that U.S. racing has a well-funded, national league office with programs and services that are integral to the sport’s growth and development.

The combination was a result of a 10-year licensing and operating agreement. Breeders’ Cup licensed to NTRA all of its property rights and trademarks while owning and exercising key decision authority over its core programs, including the Breeders’ Cup World Thoroughbred Championships and the Breeders’ Cup Stakes Program, both of which are carried out by the NTRA.

NTRA and Breeders’ Cup retain their separate, independent corporate status, boards and individual rights and assets. Breeders’ Cup gained two seats on the NTRA Board, representing horsemen’s interests, and the companies’ Lexington, Ky., offices consolidated. Marketing, sponsorship and television sales, finance and administrative functions are fully integrated. Specialized Breeders’ Cup-related programs remain separate.

The companies are managed by the "office of the chairman," consisting of Tim Smith, commissioner, CEO and chairman of the NTRA, and D.G. Van Clief, Jr., vice chairman of the NTRA and president of Breeders’ Cup Limited.

The organizations function under a combined operating budget, approved by both NTRA and Breeders’ Cup Boards. The 2002 combined NTRA/Breeders’ Cup operating budget of $59 million includes $29 million for marketing and television programs and $20 million for purses and awards for horsemen.

The benefits of the combination are cost savings through program consolidation and a significant increase in interest from the sponsorship marketplace. The greatest opportunity emerging from the combination is to build a wider, better-educated, more loyal audience for Thoroughbred racing using as focal points the sport’s championship divisions and their crowning event, the $13 million Breeders’ Cup World Thoroughbred Championships.

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