Longines League of Nations Final 2026: How Germany Won and How It Works

Who won the Longines League of Nations Final 2026?

Germany won the Longines League of Nations Final on October 4, 2026, at CSIO Barcelona (Real Club de Polo). Germany and Brazil finished the two rounds level on 4 faults, and Germany's Richard Vogel and Cloudio jumped clear in the jump-off to take the title.

It was Germany's second major team title of 2026, after the team world championship in Aachen. The final carried total prize money of 1.4 million euros, according to the official result sheet.

League of Nations Barcelona 2026 results

Nine nations jumped a 1.60 m course built by Santiago Varela. Here are the top finishers:

Ireland, France and Spain completed the field. The Chronicle of the Horse lists Ireland on 20, France on 21 and Spain on 36.

The day was also disrupted: after torrential overnight rain and flooding in the region, severe-weather warnings led organizers to move the start from noon to 2:30 pm, according to the Chronicle of the Horse.

How the Germany League of Nations jump-off played out

Brazil jumped first in the jump-off. Rodrigo Pessoa and Major Tom had the opening fence down, in a time of 39.48 seconds.

Vogel then needed only a clear round. He and Cloudio finished without a fault in 40.85 seconds, slower than Brazil but with no penalty, which is what decides it.

Germany's other counting scores came from Marcus Ehning with Coolio 42 and Jörne Sprehe with Toys, both clear in both rounds. Sophie Hinners and Iron Dames my Prins had 4 faults in round one, which was the dropped score. Cloudio also received the series' best horse award, according to the Chronicle of the Horse.

How does a show jumping jump-off work?

A jump-off is a tiebreaker. When teams or riders are level on faults, they jump a shorter course to decide the winner.

The rules are simple:

• Faults come first. A fence down (4 faults) beats any speed advantage.
• If faults are equal, the faster time wins.
• In this team final, one rider per tied team jumped. That was Pessoa for Brazil and Vogel for Germany.

How a team final scores: the team of four

Each nation brings four horse-and-rider pairs. The final has two rounds, and the Chronicle of the Horse's report shows the 2026 scoring working this way:

• Round one: all four jump, and the best three scores count. The worst is dropped.
• Round two: three riders per team jump, and every score counts. Penalties carry forward from round one.

That is why Germany's total was only 4. Hinners' round-one faults were dropped, and Vogel's rail in round two was the only penalty that counted.

The lesson for newcomers: one fence down can change the standings, because there is no drop score to hide it in round two. Consistency across all three riders matters more than one brilliant round.

How the series works

The Longines League of Nations is a season-long series between countries. In 2026 it had four qualifying legs: Abu Dhabi (February 13), Ocala, USA (March 21), Rotterdam (scheduled for June 19) and St. Tropez (September 20). Nations earned points across the legs, and the qualifiers met in the Barcelona final, scheduled for October 1 to 4.

Before the final, Germany led the standings with 190 points after the first two legs, ahead of France with 155 and Ireland with 150.

Nations Cup show jumping explained

The League of Nations is a nation-versus-nation series. The key idea is that you ride for your country, not for a sponsor or a stable. The team's chef d'équipe, such as Germany's Otto Becker, picks the four riders.

That is different from the Longines Global Champions Tour, a circuit built around individual riders and club-style teams. It also differs from Major League Show Jumping, which is a franchise-style team league. For the individual world rankings route, see the FEI Jumping World Cup.

What to watch next

The 2026 League of Nations season has now ended with this final. Watch which of Barcelona's riders turn up at the next big shows.

To understand the sport better, a few places to start:

• Read our disciplines guide to see how jumping compares with dressage and eventing.
• Learn the vocabulary in the glossary.
• If you want to try it yourself, see get started and the riding skills page.

The British side, the defending champions, finished sixth. Jess Mendoza and In The Air won the Grand Prix of the City of Barcelona during the same CSIO, according to British Showjumping.