Welcome to your comprehensive guide to betting on the 2026 Cheltenham Festival, the pinnacle of the National Hunt (Jumps) racing season. Held at the iconic Prestbury Park racecourse from Tuesday, March 10th to Friday, March 13th, 2026, this four-day event promises unparalleled excitement.
Read on to discover the major championship races, the best Cheltenham betting offers available, popular bet types, and where to find expert tips.
Ready to get started? Sign up to BoyleSports today to get ahead of the action and check out the latest ante-post odds for the Cheltenham Festival.
Major Championship Races at Cheltenham
Each of the four days of the Cheltenham Festival is headlined by a major Championship race.
Day 1 (Tuesday): The Champion Hurdle – a prestigious two-mile hurdle race. Recent winners have included Constitution Hill and State Man.
Day 2 (Wednesday): The Queen Mother Champion Chase – a test of speed and jumping for elite two-mile chasers. It’s run on Style Wednesday, when the outfits get as much attention as the horse racing.
Day 3 (Thursday): The Stayers' Hurdle – the main event for horses with top-level stamina over three miles.
Day 4 (Friday): The Cheltenham Gold Cup – the most coveted prize in jump racing. Legendary winners from down the years include Arkle and Golden Miller, while we’ve seen a recent back-to-back winner, Galopin Des Champs ridden by Paul Townend.
Cheltenham Betting Offers & Promotions
You’ll find a range of horse racing betting offers and promotions to help with your Cheltenham betting at BoyleSports.
1. Best Odds Guaranteed (BOG): We guarantee that you get the most competitive odds possible. If the Starting Price (SP) is bigger than the price taken, your bet pays out at the bigger odds.
2. Non-Runner No Bet (NRNB): Non-Runner No Bet (NRNB): This offers a crucial safety net for your Cheltenham betting, especially for ante-post wagers. If your chosen horse is withdrawn from the race after you've placed your bet but before the race starts, your stakes are returned. It offers a little peace of mind when betting on future races.
3. Each-Way Extra: You can choose more or fewer places for each-way bets, which adjusts your potential odds up or down.
4. Bet Boosts / Enhanced Odds: You’ll find bigger prizes on offer for selected runners. This is often the case for the favourites in the big championship races.
Explore all our latest Cheltenham Festival betting offers to maximise your betting experience with BoyleSports.
Popular Cheltenham Bet Types
Some of the most popular Cheltenham bet types include:
Win: A straightforward bet on which horse you think will win a race at the Cheltenham Festival.
Place: Back your horse to finish in one of the top positions in the race. Often, the top races at Cheltenham will have a greater number of places to bet on.
Each-Way: Wager on your horse either to win or to place, with two bets. Both bets pay out if your horse wins, while only the bet to place pays out if your horse places.
Forecast: Predict which two horses will finish first and second in the exact order.
Tricast: Pick the top three horses to finish in the precise order.
Multiples: Bet on the outcome of several races across the Cheltenham Festival. A double is a bet on two races, while a treble is a bet on three races. Other more complicated multiples include a Yankee Bet or a Lucky 15 Bet. A Yankee Bet includes four separate selections, while a Lucky 15 Bet is made up of 15 bets. You can use our helpful betting calculator to help understand multiple bets and their potential payouts.
How to Find Cheltenham Tips & Insights
When it comes to betting on Cheltenham, a little expert insight can go a long way to helping you make profitable bets. Classic horse racing publications like the Racing Post will help you study the form of the runners at Cheltenham, and it’s also a good source for news and expert NAPs (Not a Problem tips) – these are the horses that are the clear favourites for each race.
Our BoyleSports blog also features a dedicated Cheltenham tips page. Here you’ll find predictions on the big races, expert insights on the Gold Cup, Champion Hurdle tips, and some ideas on potential outsiders. We do everything we can to help you find the best value in your Cheltenham betting.
A Brief History of the Festival
Cheltenham Festival in its first format goes all the way back to the 1800s, with flat race meetings held on Notting Hill in 1818.
The Cheltenham Festival in its true nature began in the 1860s, when the National Hunt Chase was run at Market Harborough. It then had multiple race locations and was called the Grand National Hunt Meeting, until it was first run at its current home at Prestbury Park in 1911.
In its first guise, the festival was a three-day event, with the Gold Cup first introduced in 1924. This changed in 2005, when it was extended to a four-day festival, which allowed one championship race to be run on each day. It also saw the festival culminate with the Cheltenham Gold Cup on the final day.
We’ve seen some iconic moments at Cheltenham down the years, with races and winners that will live long in the memory. This includes Arkle's hat-trick of Gold Cup wins from 1964-66 and Norton's Coin's 100/1 victory in 1990.
Bet on Cheltenham with BoyleSports
Sign up to BoyleSports for comprehensive Cheltenham betting markets and odds for every race at the festival. You’ll find competitive Cheltenham Gold Cup odds, as well as odds on the Champion Hurdle, Stayers’ Hurdle, and more.
We are fully licensed and regulated by the UK Gambling Commission, and promote responsible gambling to all our players to help you stay in control of your betting experience. For more information, visit BeGambleAware.org and GamCare.
Frequently Asked Questions
When is the 2026 Cheltenham Festival?
The 2026 Cheltenham Festival is held from Tuesday 10th March to Friday 13th March 2026.
What are the feature races on each day of the Cheltenham Festival?
The feature races at Cheltenham include:
Day 1 (Tuesday): The Champion Hurdle
Day 2 (Wednesday): The Queen Mother Champion Chase
Day 3 (Thursday): The Stayers' Hurdle
Day 4 (Friday): The Cheltenham Gold Cup
How can I place a bet on the Cheltenham Festival?
It’s simple to place a bet on the Cheltenham Festival with BoyleSports. Sign up or log in to your BoyleSports account, then navigate to our dedicated Cheltenham Festival page. You’ll see each of the races run across the festival, the horses and their odds. Simply choose your horse, check the odds, select your stake and add it to your bet slip. You’ll also find ante-post Cheltenham odds where you can bet on races before the course betting market has officially opened.
What does 'ante-post' betting on Cheltenham mean?
With ante-post betting, you’ll see odds before the course market opens. This enables you to place bets on races at Cheltenham in advance of the festival. Before the betting market opens, each horse will have ante-post odds on our sports betting platform. Once the betting market does open, these will change to the latest up-to-date odds.
