Riding Cup · 2026–2027
Riding Cup rules
Setup, video capture, judging and points: identical conditions for every club.
I · Conditions of participation
1 · Riders
A rider creates an account on the platform, fills in their location (country, region, department) and links one or more horses to their profile.
If a club has already entered them, their account already exists: they retrieve their username from that club, add their email address, then freely choose their password.
The number of entries is unlimited, but the same rider/horse combination may not run the same event twice. The choice of level is up to the rider and the entering club; the organising club may refuse a start it deems unsuitable.
2 · Clubs
The manager creates their account, then their club page, and assigns it a location before any entry. From their dashboard, they add their riders and horses.
Each rider entered automatically receives an account. To avoid duplicates, ask any rider who has already participated for their Equi-rider username.
3 · Horses
The entering club, or the independent rider, ensures that the horse entered has the physical and mental ability required for the chosen event.
II · Conditions of organisation
1 · Responsibility
To organise a stage, the club must have an account, a complete club page, a location, bank details to collect entries, and a description of the available equipment.
The organiser knows the rules and places animal welfare, professional common sense and kindness at the heart of their organisation. They may refuse the start of a combination that does not comply with the rules or equestrian ethics, and accept a possible visit from a member of the Equi-rider team.
If the team finds, on site or on video, that the rules or the arena were not respected, a result or a competition may be cancelled and the right to organise suspended. Equi-rider is not responsible for the quality of organisation: participant safety is the responsibility of the organising club and the entering clubs.
2 · Specifications
Each discipline has its own specifications: arena dimensions, equipment, official course layout and video framing. The course or educational exercise must be reproduced faithfully.
- The recording must show the entire performance, without cuts or editing.
- Dressage is filmed from the judge's viewpoint at C.
- A video of insufficient quality may be penalised by the judge.
- Videos are uploaded by the organising club, or by the independent rider.
III · Rules of practice
1 · Show jumping
1 · Scoring tables
Events are run under Table A, with or without a stopwatch depending on the announced event. The chosen table is specified at entry time and applies to all combinations in the event.
2 · Penalties
After elimination, the combination leaves the arena on foot. The organising club may allow a jump in the warm-up area, or a simple obstacle to reassure the combination.
| Situation | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Obstacle knocked down | 4 points |
| Refusal or run-out | 4 points |
| 3 cumulative refusals or run-outs | Elimination |
| Fall of rider or horse | Elimination |
| Hand placed on a rail | Elimination |
| Uncorrected course error | Elimination |
3 · Time
The time allowed is calculated from the course length and the speed of the event. Any exceedance incurs penalty points according to the announced table.
2 · Hunter
1 · Scoring
Hunter rewards style, regularity and the fluidity of the round. The compulsory movements and overall marks make up the final score.
2 · Penalties
| Situation | Penalty |
|---|---|
| Obstacle knocked down | Style penalty |
| Refusal or run-out | Style penalty |
| 3 cumulative refusals or run-outs | Elimination |
| Fall of rider or horse | Elimination |
| Course error | Elimination |
3 · Judging
Rounds are judged on video by a certified judge, via the Equi-rider judging tool. The scoresheet is then available on the rider's account and on their club's account.
3 · Equifun
1 · Definition of the discipline
Equifun is an educational entertainment event: the rider completes, against the clock, a series of agility, jumping and skill obstacles in numerical order. Each obstacle offers difficulty options, teaching riders to choose the line suited to their combination.
2 · Tack and bits
- Bits: refer to the official FFE bit chart (general provisions).
- Pelham, Pessoa and gag bits are allowed only with non-adjustable cheekpieces and a single pair of sliding reins.
- Bitless riding is allowed, except hackamore.
- Draw reins are forbidden.
3 · Permitted equipment
- Running martingale on reins fitted with movable stops.
- Standing martingale adjusted loosely and non-elastic, reaching the placed neck girth.
- Bit guards, ear bonnets, boots, bandages, noseband covers, saddle pads, tongue ties, cruppers and breastplates.
- Braided and/or secured tail.
4 · Events table
| Event | Age | Equine size |
|---|---|---|
| A2 | 10 years and under | A |
| A1 | 12 years and under | A |
| Club Benjamin | 12 years and under | All pony and horse sizes |
| Club Minime | 14 years and under | All pony and horse sizes |
| Club Cadet | 16 years and under | All pony and horse sizes |
| Club Junior | 18 years and under | All pony and horse sizes |
| Club Sénior | Over 18 years | All pony and horse sizes |
5 · Penalties
An obstacle is judged without penalty when cleared according to the announced layout, with no equipment moved or knocked down. Penalties already incurred on an obstacle remain for subsequent attempts; circling inside an obstacle is a course error.
| Situation | Penalty |
|---|---|
| 1st fault on an obstacle | 20 seconds |
| Further faults on the same obstacle | 5 seconds each |
| Obstacle destroyed and impassable from the 1st attempt | 40 seconds |
| Obstacle destroyed and impassable from the 2nd attempt | 20 seconds |
| Obstacle not completed on the 1st attempt and not retried | 40 seconds |
| Obstacle not completed after 2 attempts and not retried | 20 seconds |
| Entry or exit gate not crossed | 20 seconds |
| Help by touching the rider or the horse | 20 seconds |
| Course error | Elimination |
| 1st fall | Elimination |
| 3 obstacles rendered impassable | Elimination |
6 · Technical standards
| Event | Maximum height |
|---|---|
| A2 | 30 cm |
| A1 | 30 cm |
| Club Benjamin | 40 cm |
| Club Minime | 50 cm |
| Club Cadet | 60 cm |
| Club Junior | 60 cm |
| Club Sénior | 60 cm |
7 · Time
The clock starts when crossing the first gate and stops at the last one, when the combination is aligned with the gate, as for dressage precision.
8 · Ranking
Ranking is based on time: course time plus penalties converted into seconds. The fastest final time wins the event.
4 · Dressage
1 · Penalties
| Situation | Judge's penalty |
|---|---|
| Course error (1st and 2nd time) | −1% each time |
| Course error (3rd time) | Elimination |
| Leaving the arena over the boards | Elimination |
| Leaving the arena through the open gate at A | −1% (course error) |
| Lameness, bleeding, fall of the combination | Elimination |
| Brutality or ill-treatment | Elimination |
| Unauthorised whip, boots or earpiece, incorrect dress | −2 points |
| Non-compliant salute | −2 points |
| Outside assistance (club, pony, amateur, instructor events) | −5 points per intervention |
| Outside assistance (pro events) | Elimination |
| Tack or bit fault found after the test | −5% |
2 · Judging
Tests are judged on video by two certified judges in the Equi-rider tool. Recording is done from the judge's viewpoint at C and must allow objective judging; insufficient quality may be penalised. The generated scoresheet is available on the rider's account and on their club's account.
5 · Equifeel
1 · Bonuses and penalties
Each educational exercise has its own criteria: the judge awards the planned bonuses when the test is performed under the requested conditions, and applies the corresponding penalties in case of assistance, overtime or an unperformed test.
2 · Judging
Tests are judged on video by a certified judge. The framing must show the rider, their horse and the obstacle throughout the test.
3 · Equipment
- Suitable headcollar and lead rope, in good condition.
- Work stick allowed depending on the educational exercise.
- Obstacle equipment compliant with the stage specifications.
- Any coercive equipment is forbidden.
4 · Results
The total of bonuses, minus penalties, determines the event ranking. In case of a tie, the judge applies the tie-break criterion provided by the educational exercise.
6 · Long reining
1 · Riding Cup participation
Long-reining events are open to combinations entered by a club or independently, on the same stages as the other disciplines, and earn points under the same calculation.
2 · Procedure
The handler leads their equine on foot along the announced course, respecting the order of obstacles and the requested gaits.
3 · Bits and rules
Bits follow the official bit chart. Any coercive bit or adjustment leads to the elimination of the combination.
4 · Training aids and miscellaneous
Fixed training aids are forbidden. Leg protection, ear bonnets and boots remain allowed, subject to the organiser's control.
IV · “Riding Cup” tournament rules
1 · Definition
Equi-rider organises a tournament for riders and clubs called the Riding Cup. At the end of the season, it rewards the best riders and clubs of each event and each discipline with prizes. The season follows the school year, from 1 September to 1 July.
Four stages can be organised on arenas of different sizes. Neither clubs nor riders are required to take part in all four.
2 · Competition points
Riders and clubs accumulate competition points throughout the tournament: the total determines the ranking position.
1 · Rider competition points (PCCA)
A rider accumulates PCCA event by event and can therefore be ranked in several events.
PCCA = (Result × Event entries × Participation coefficient) + Participation bonus
1 · Result
| Ranking | Points |
|---|---|
| 1st | 150 |
| 2nd | 120 |
| 3rd | 100 |
| 1st quarter | 50 |
| 2nd quarter | 30 |
| 3rd quarter | 15 |
| 4th quarter | 5 |
| Eliminated, non-starter, retired | 0 |
2 · Event entries
| Number of entries | Multiplier |
|---|---|
| 0 to 5 | 0.2 |
| 6 to 10 | 0.4 |
| 11 to 20 | 0.6 |
| 21 to 50 | 0.8 |
| 51 to 100 | 1 |
| 101 to 200 | 2 |
| 201 and more | 3 |
3 · Participation coefficient (COPA)
The COPA limits convenience entries by applying a penalty to combinations already highly successful in a higher event. The index corresponds to the event height.
- Several entries in the same event: only the best result counts (×1), the others are neutralised (×0).
- The same combination over several events: ×1 on the highest event, ×0.6 one index below, ×0.1 from two indices below.
- A rider over several events: ×1 up to two indices below their highest event, ×0.4 from three indices.
- If several COPAs can apply, the lowest is used.
4 · Participation bonus (BOPA)
A 15-point bonus is added to the rider's best result in an event of a stage. Further entries in the same event do not qualify for the bonus.
2 · Club competition points (PCCL)
A club accumulates PCCL each time it organises a stage or enters riders in it: its points correspond to the sum of its riders' PCCA.
Example: a club with 50 entries whose PCCA total 1,770 points scores 1,770 PCCL.
PCCL = sum of the club's riders' PCCA