Prix de l'Opéra prize money
Prix de l'Opéra is worth €500,000 for the 2021 running , €285,700 of it to the winner . That makes it the 169th richest of the 997 races on this site and the 12th richest in France.
Every figure here is the money the race announces, in the currency it announces it in. The currency control at the top swaps the whole page.
What the Prix de l'Opéra is
Group 1 · 2,000 metres (1¼ miles) · Turf · Longchamp Racecourse
- Racecourse
- Longchamp Racecourse
- Country
- France
- Grade
- Group 1
- Distance
- 2,000 metres (1¼ miles)
- Surface
- Turf
- Race type
- Flat / Thoroughbred
- Open to
- Three-years-old and up fillies and mares
- Direction
- Right-handed
- First run
- 1974
The winner takes 57% of the fund. The remaining €214,300 is shared between the horses behind, on a scale the racecourse sets race by race rather than a fixed one.
Run in 2:05.52 in 2025, Prix de l'Opéra pays €3,983 for every second of the race, which is 168th of the 611 races in horse racing prize money per second and 17th in France.
Where the Prix de l'Opéra prize money goes
France Galop sets the shares
| Who takes it | Share of the fund | Out of this purse |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | 75% | €375,000 |
| Trainer | 14% | €70,000 |
| Jockey | 8.5% | €42,500 |
| Social charges | 2.5% | €12,500 |
Every share here is a percentage of the €500,000 fund rather than of the winner's cheque, and the rider's figure covers the whole field rather than the winning rider alone. The same rule pays every race in the country, and where a purse goes in France works it out across all of them.
What a French-bred horse adds on top
Group 1, so the rate is 20%
France is the one country here where the purse is not the end of the money.
| Horse | Rate | Premium on the race | Premium to the winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Every age, in Group 1 and Group 1 Purebred Arabian | 20% | €100,000 | €57,140 |
The premium is paid on top of the purse rather than out of it, and in full. A second premium goes to the breeder who produced the horse, charged on the prize and the owner's premium together: 13% where the covering took place in France.
Every Prix de l'Opéra winner
52 runnings, 1974 to 2025, newest first
| Year | Winner | Jockey | Trainer | Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Barnavara3 · 2:05.52 | Shane Foley | Jessica Harrington | Alpha Racing |
| 2024 | Friendly Soul3 · 2:07.65 | Kieran Shoemark | John & Thady Gosden | George Strawbridge |
| 2023 | Blue Rose Cen3 · 2:03.71 | Aurelien Lemaitre | Christopher Head | Yeguada Centurion SL |
| 2022 | Place Du Carrousel3 · 2:12.64 | Mickael Barzalona | André Fabre | Al Shaqab Racing & Ballylinch Stud |
| 2021 | Rougir3 · 2:11.15 | Maxime Guyon | Cedric Rossi | Le Haras De La Gousserie |
| 2020 | Tarnawa4 · 2:12.87 | Christophe Soumillon | Dermot Weld | HH Aga Khan IV |
| 2019 | Villa Marina3 · 2:09.09 | Olivier Peslier | Carlos Laffon-Parias | SARL Darpat France |
| 2018 | Wild Illusion3 · 2:04.32 | William Buick | Charlie Appleby | Godolphin |
| 2017 | Rhododendron3 · 2:03.60 | Seamie Heffernan | Aidan O'Brien | Magnier / Tabor / Smith |
| 2016 | Speedy Boarding4 · 2:02.03 | Frederik Tylicki | James Fanshawe | Helena Springfield Ltd |
| 2015 | Covert Love3 · 2:04.43 | Pat Smullen | Hugo Palmer | Fomo Syndicate |
| 2014 | We Are3 · 2:02.43 | Thierry Jarnet | Freddy Head | George Strawbridge Jr. |
| 2013 | Dalkala4 · 2:09.03 | Christophe Soumillon | Alain de Royer-Dupré | HH Aga Khan IV |
| 2012 | Ridasiyna3 · 2:11.13 | Christophe Lemaire | Mikel Delzangles | HH Aga Khan IV |
| 2011 | Nahrain3 · 2:02.74 | Frankie Dettori | Roger Varian | Ahmed Al Maktoum |
| 2010 | Lily of the Valley3 · 2:09.80 | Ioritz Mendizabal | Jean-Claude Rouget | Bernard Barsi |
| 2009 | Shalanaya3 · 2:01.80 | Maxime Guyon | Mikel Delzangles | HH Aga Khan IV |
| 2008 | Lady Marian3 · 2:03.80 | Dominique Boeuf | Werner Baltromei | R'stall Gestüt Hachtsee |
| 2007 | Satwa Queen5 · 2:03.80 | Thierry Thulliez | Jean de Roualle | Steven & Gillian Lamprell |
| 2006 | Mandesha3 · 2:00.90 | Christophe Soumillon | Alain de Royer-Dupré | Zahra Aga Khan |
| 2005 | Kinnaird4 · 2:04.60 | Kevin Darley | Patrick Haslam | Renata Jacobs |
| 2004 | Alexander Goldrun3 · 2:02.30 | Kevin Manning | Jim Bolger | Miriam O'Callaghan |
| 2003 | Zee Zee Top4 · 2:08.00 | Kieren Fallon | Sir Michael Stoute | Helena Springfield Ltd |
| 2002 | Bright Sky3 · 2:02.30 | Dominique Boeuf | Élie Lellouche | Ecurie Wildenstein |
| 2001 | Terre a Terre4 · 2:19.30 | Christophe Soumillon | Eric Libaud | Devin / Ashbrooke |
| 2000 | Petrushka3 · 2:02.00 | Johnny Murtagh | Sir Michael Stoute | Highclere Racing Ltd |
| 1999 | Diamond White4 · 2:02.30 | Tim Sprake | Mick Ryan | Peter Scott |
| 1998 | Insight3 · 1:58.60 | Cash Asmussen | John Hammond | Niarchos Family |
| 1997 | Clodora3 · 1:51.10 | Thierry Jarnet | André Fabre | Jean-Luc Lagardère |
| 1996 | Donna Viola4 · 1:55.50 | John Reid | Chris Wall | Kieran Scott |
| 1995 | Timarida3 · 1:55.70 | Johnny Murtagh | John Oxx | Aga Khan IV |
| 1994 | Andromaque4 · 1:53.90 | Pat Eddery | Roger Charlton | Carlos Stelling |
| 1993 | Verveine4 · 1:58.90 | Olivier Peslier | Élie Lellouche | Daniel Wildenstein |
| 1992 | Hatoof3 · 2:02.50 | Walter Swinburn | Criquette Head | Maktoum Al Maktoum |
| 1991 | Martessa3 · 1:56.30 | Terence Hellier | Andreas Wöhler | Gestüt Hof Heidendom |
| 1990 | Colour Chart3 · 1:54.60 | Cash Asmussen | André Fabre | Sheikh Mohammed |
| 1989 | Athyka4 · 1:56.30 | Guy Guignard | Criquette Head | Jacques Wertheimer |
| 1988 | Athyka3 · 1:52.00 | Guy Guignard | Criquette Head | Jacques Wertheimer |
| 1987 | Mona Stella3 · 1:56.50 | Gary W. Moore | Criquette Head | Jacques Wertheimer |
| 1986 | Secret Form3 · 1:53.70 | Cash Asmussen | Pascal Bary | Peter Goulandris |
| 1985 | Bella Colora3 · 1:53.50 | Walter Swinburn | Michael Stoute | Helena Springfield Ltd |
| 1984 | Reine Mathilde3 · 2:08.10 | Freddy Head | Criquette Head | Ecurie Aland |
| 1983 | Royal Heroine3 · 1:50.10 | Walter Swinburn | Michael Stoute | Robert Sangster |
| 1982 | Dione3 · 1:59.70 | Willie Carson | John Dunlop | Daniel Prenn |
| 1981 | Kilmona3 · 2:01.90 | Yves Saint-Martin | Gérald Sauque | Mrs Léon Givaudan |
| 1980 | Hortensia3 · 1:52.20 | Alain Lequeux | Olivier Douieb | Robert Sangster |
| 1979 | Producer3 · 1:56.30 | Lester Piggott | Maurice Zilber | Roy Gottlieb |
| 1978 | Cistus3 · 2:03.40 | Willie Carson | Dick Hern | Sir Michael Sobell |
| 1977 | Waya3 · 1:53.50 | Yves Saint-Martin | Angel Penna | Daniel Wildenstein |
| 1976 | Dona Barod4 · 2:02.20 | Maurice Philipperon | John Cunnington Jr. | Antonio Blasco |
| 1975 | Sea Sands3 · 1:57.60 | Yves Saint-Martin | Miguel Clément | W. J. Salmon Jr. |
| 1974 | Cheryl3 · 2:00.50 | Jean-Claude Desaint | Freddie Palmer | T. Kitano |
52 of the 52 runnings name the rider, 52 name the trainer and 52 name the owner, who is the one of the three the prize money actually belongs to.
Who wins the Prix de l'Opéra more than once
The fact the table above holds and cannot show
Most wins by a jockey
| Horse | Wins | Years |
|---|---|---|
| Athyka | 2 | 1988, 1989 |
Races worth about the same
Either side of Prix de l'Opéra in the world money order
| # | Race | Country | Prize money | As published |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 158 | Maker's Mark Mile StakesKeeneland Race Course | United States | €527,820 | $600,000 |
| 159 | Transylvania StakesKeeneland | United States | €527,820 | $600,000 |
| 160 | Champion HurdleCheltenham Racecourse | Great Britain | €526,500 | £450,000 |
| 161 | Derby ItalianoCapannelle Racecourse | Italy | €523,800 | €523,800 |
| 162 | Prix La Haye JousselinAuteuil Racecourse | France | €520,000 | €520,000 |
| 163 | Karaka MillionEllerslie Racecourse | New Zealand | €515,853 | NZ$1,000,000 |
| 164 | New Zealand OaksEllerslie, Auckland | New Zealand | €515,853 | NZ$1,000,000 |
| 165 | New Zealand Trotting CupAddington Raceway | New Zealand | €515,853 | NZ$1,000,000 |
| 167 | Poule d'Essai des PoulichesLongchamp Racecourse | France | €500,000 | €500,000 |
| 168 | Preis der DianaDüsseldorf Racecourse | Germany | €500,000 | €500,000 |
| 170 | Durban July HandicapGreyville Racecourse | South Africa | €499,590 | R10,000,000 |
| 171 | Sha Tin TrophySha Tin Racecourse | Hong Kong | €472,388 | HK$4,250,000 |
| 172 | Queen Mother Champion ChaseCheltenham Racecourse | Great Britain | €468,000 | £400,000 |
| 173 | Craven PlateRandwick Racecourse, | Australia | €464,286 | AU$750,000 |
| 174 | Moonee Valley Gold CupMoonee Valley Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia | Australia | €464,286 | AU$750,000 |
| 175 | Oakleigh PlateCaulfield Racecourse | Australia | €464,286 | AU$750,000 |
| 176 | Rosehill GuineasRosehill Gardens Racecourse | Australia | €464,286 | AU$750,000 |
| 177 | Villiers StakesRandwick Racecourse | Australia | €464,286 | AU$750,000 |
| 178 | Zipping ClassicCaulfield Racecourse, Melbourne, Australia | Australia | €464,286 | AU$750,000 |
| 181 | Irish 2,000 GuineasCurragh Racecourse | Ireland | €460,000 | €460,000 |
The 20 races closest to Prix de l'Opéra in what they pay, above and below it. Follow the ranking all the way up on the richest races in the world.
The rest of the money in France
131 races, 12th of them is this one
| Race | Racecourse | Grade | Prize money |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poule d'Essai des Poulains | Longchamp Racecourse | Group 1 | €600,000 |
| Prix Vermeille | Longchamp Racecourse | Group 1 | €600,000 |
| Prix La Haye Jousselin | Auteuil Racecourse | Group 1 | €520,000 |
| Poule d'Essai des Pouliches | Longchamp Racecourse | Group 1 | €500,000 |
| Prix du Moulin de Longchamp | Longchamp Racecourse | Group 1 | €450,000 |
| Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud | Saint-Cloud Racecourse | Group 1 | €400,000 |
| Prix Guillaume d'Ornano | Deauville Racecourse | Group 2 | €400,000 |
| Prix Jean Prat | Deauville Racecourse | Group 1 | €400,000 |
Every race in France we hold a purse for is on the France prize money list.
Frequently asked questions
How much does the Prix de l'Opéra winner get?
€285,700. That is 57% of the €500,000 Prix de l'Opéra is worth, and the rest is shared down the field.
What is the total Prix de l'Opéra prize money?
€500,000, for the 2021 running.
Where does the Prix de l'Opéra rank among the richest races in the world?
169th of 997. 168 races pay more, the nearest of them Maker's Mark Mile Stakes. In France it is 12th of 131.
Which horse has won the Prix de l'Opéra most often?
Athyka, 2 times, in 1988, 1989.
Which jockey has won the Prix de l'Opéra most often?
Christophe Soumillon, with 4 wins between 2001 and 2020.
When was the Prix de l'Opéra first run?
1974. This page holds 52 runnings, from 1974 to 2025.
How far is the Prix de l'Opéra?
2,000 metres (1¼ miles), on turf, at Longchamp Racecourse.
Where to next
The rest of the racing money
Racing by country
Elsewhere in racing
- Every race at Longchamp Racecourse
- Where a purse goes in France
- French-bred premiums, and what they are worth
- The richest races in the world
- Horse racing prize money per second
- The 100 most successful racehorses
- The jockeys with the most wins
- The trainers with the most wins
- The owners with the most wins
- Horse racing prize money