As part of the three-year deal, Howden will take up prominent trackside signage at Flemington and will assume naming rights to the Group 1 Howden Australian Guineas (1600m), Australia’s premier autumn three-year-old race and the feature on Howden Australian Guineas Day. The race day is one of Flemington’s three key autumn race days, with 2023 being the highest attended Australian Guineas Day since 2016.
The agreement will also see Howden become an official support partner of the Lexus Melbourne Cup Tour. Now in its 21st year, the Lexus Melbourne Cup Tour is an important community initiative of the VRC that drives local and international engagement with Australia’s most iconic sporting trophy, the 18-carat gold, Lexus Melbourne Cup. To celebrate the new partnership, this year’s Lexus Melbourne Cup Day will feature the Howden Desirable Stakes.
As an official partner of Royal Ascot since 2021, the team at Howden have a passion for racing and will entertain guests and clients trackside during the Melbourne Cup Carnival from this year.
VRC Chief Executive Officer Steve Rosich welcomed Howden to the VRC family.
"The VRC is delighted to have Howden join the list of VRC partners and become the club’s official insurance partner until at least 2026,” Mr Rosich said.
“We are thrilled to welcome Howden to our stable of outstanding long-term partners including the likes of Lexus, TAB, Penfolds, Furphy and Kennedy, through which we have shared mutual beneficial partnerships with for many years. We pride ourselves on these relationships and look forward to what the future holds with Howden.”
“The Howden Australian Guineas Day is one of the best Group 1 days on the racing calendar at Flemington. We thank Howden for their support of events at Australia’s premier racecourse as well as the Lexus Melbourne Cup Tour, which takes the magic of the $600,000 trophy to people across Australia and the world.”
Howden Pacific Chief Executive Officer Matt Bacon said the company was proud to start a new partnership with the VRC.
“We are thrilled to partner with the Victoria Racing Club, custodians of Flemington Racecourse and Australia’s greatest racing event the Melbourne Cup Carnival,’ Mr. Bacon said.
“This comes after we forged an official partnership with Ascot Racecourse in 2021 and thus it was fitting to join forces with another world-renowned track in Flemington.
“Both VRC and Howden have a passion for racing and the way in which it unites and excites people, so we are delighted to be sharing that through Howden Australian Guineas Day and as support partner of the Lexus Melbourne Cup Tour.
“Howden has firm plans to expand its presence in Australia and we know the Melbourne Cup Carnival in spring and Flemington Racing Spectacular in autumn has strong reach that will help us grow our brand awareness in the Australian market.”
David Howden, CEO, Howden adds: “Further to our very successful Ascot partnership in the UK, the opportunity to be associated with one of the world’s most thrilling and iconic race days – Australia’s Lexus Melbourne Cup – is hugely exciting for us and means we can take our new brand to new audiences.
“Our work as a specialist provider of equine insurance solutions to the equine industry is extensive and through these partnerships, we gain a greater understanding of how to mitigate the risks associated with the sport.”
About Howden
Howden Insurance Brokers and Howden Pacific are subsidiaries of Howden Group and offer Financial Lines, Affinity Solutions, People Risk & Employee Benefits, Commercial & Corporate Risks, Risk Consulting & Valuations, Alternative Risk Transfer Solutions and Claims Management.
Howden Group is a leading global insurance group with employee ownership at its heart. Founded in 1994, it provides insurance broking, reinsurance broking and underwriting services and solutions to clients ranging from individuals to the largest multinational companies.
The group operates in 50 countries across Europe, Africa, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, the USA, Australia and New Zealand, employing 15,000 people and handling $30bn USD of premium on behalf of clients.
For more information, please visit howdengroup.com and howdengroupholdings.com
