Cup Day, Melbourne 2025
Cup Day always sneaks up, even when one knows it's coming. By the time one glances at the morning papers, half of Melbourne seems to have found a hat, a horse, and a reason to take the day off.
Melbourne Cup
A Tradition in Motion: The History of the Melbourne Cup
From colonial paddock to global stage, the Melbourne Cup has traced Australia’s rise from frontier to modernity — one furlong at a time. The first Melbourne Cup was run in 1861, when the city was still a young colonial settlement.
The Season Under Other Stars
While the northern countryside settles into mist and pheasant calls, the Southern Hemisphere is bright with its own anticipation. In Melbourne, the air sharpens, the jacarandas bloom, and the lawns of Flemington Racecourse are cut to a billiard's smoothness.