ENGLISH TEXTS total to four hundred. Today, approximately six hundred to seven hundred horses pass through the BBAG ring each year and around six hundred to seven hundred horses pass through the BBAG ring each year. BBAG is owned by Germany’ s leading breeders, and its executive committee is composed of eight members. The President, Karl-Dieter Ellerbracke, is none other than the owner-breeder of Gestüt Auenquelle, whose famous yellow, black and red silks have been seen on racecourses worldwide, notably carried by the winner of the 2021 Qatar Prix de l’ Arc de Triomphe, Torquator Tasso. Karl-Dieter Ellerbracke is one of the key figures behind BBAG’ s success, as Klaus Eulenberger explains:“ He is one of the people who has built the international reputation of German sales over the past thirty years.” Currently, the most international day within the agency takes place during the yearling sales, when all the major racing nations are represented. Over time, the quality of the sale has steadily improved thanks to the European and international success of German-bred horses, as well as the commitment and investment of breeders. The results speak for themselves, with winners of the world’ s greatest races across the globe: the Melbourne Cup, the Prix de l’ Arc de Triomphe, and the King George, to name but a few. One of the finest performances, in Klaus
Eulenberger’ s view, remains the victory of Tamfana, sold as a yearling for € 20,000 to Jeremy Brummitt in 2022, in the Sun Chariot Stakes in 2024. Indeed, German horses are renowned for their stamina( 2,000 metres and beyond). By winning this race, Tamfana highlighted other qualities of this breeding industry. She was subsequently resold for 2.6 million guineas at Tattersalls in 2025. Like most auction agencies, BBAG introduced online sales during the COVID period, starting with the August 2020 sale. It was a live sale( on-site and online). Since then, all physical sales have been accessible to online bidding, and two sales are held entirely online: in August for horses in training, and at the end of the year during the“ Christmas Sale.”“ It is important to have access to this tool,” explains Klaus.“ It allows everyone to bid wherever they are! Especially for horses in training, it is quite straightforward.”
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02 THE FRENCH MARKET
BY PIERRE CHAMPION
ARQANA
POOLING RESOURCES AND
EXPERTISE
2006 marked a turning point in the history of sales in France with the merger of the Agence Française de Vente de Pur-Sang, Goffs France and Artcurial, a subsidiary of the Dassault Group specialising in the marketing of works of art and collectors’ items. The entity bringing together the three structures became ARQANA, to which ARQANA Trot would soon be added, the result of the union between the Agence Française du Trot and its original competitor, Trotting Promotion.
ARQANA was created at the initiative of several investors, foremost among them H. H. the Aga Khan, whose right-hand man, Georges Rimaud, became chairman of the group. While Philippe Augier went on to succeed Anne d’ Ornano as Mayor of Deauville and to preside over the Communauté de Communes de la Côte Fleurie – he would even serve for a time as chairman of the PMU – it was Éric Hoyeau, formerly of Goffs France, who took the reins of ARQANA and continued the work of modernisation and internationalisation begun by his predecessor. The early 2010s saw the renovation of the sales complex, in a resolutely modern and avant-garde spirit designed to rank among the most sought-after venues in the world. The development of the Breeze Up market and online sales, along with the
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