Coleadero Charreria Explained: Steer Tailing Before the 2026 Nacional

If you plan to follow Mexico's national charro championship this fall, the coleadero charreria event is worth understanding, because this year it gets its own title. On Sept. 25, 2026, the Federación Mexicana de Charrería (FMCH) published the call for the Coleadero Nacional, to be held at Arena Potosí in San Luis Potosí.

The winner drives home a 2026 Ford F-250 diesel pickup. Below: how the suerte works step by step, how it is scored, what it asks of the horse and how it differs from Venezuelan and Colombian coleo.

Coleadero charreria basics: what it is

The coleadero is charreria's steer-tailing event: a mounted charro races alongside a steer down the lienzo's long lane, takes it by the tail and brings it down before the 60-meter mark. It is the third of nine suertes (events) in a team charreada, and it is scored on how the animal falls and how early.

It grew out of ranch work, where riders tailed loose cattle to stop them for doctoring or branding. Today it tests speed, grip and, above all, the partnership between rider and horse.

The FMCH rulebook calls the animal a toro and requires at least 300 kg (350 kg for a female). In English, "steer" is the usual word.

Where the coleadero sits in a charreada

The FMCH's official rulebook (2024-2028) sets this order for team competitions:

1. Cala de caballo (reining test)
2. Piales en el lienzo (heel roping in the lane)
3. Coleadero (steer tailing)
4. Jineteo de toro (bull riding)
5. Terna en el ruedo (team roping in the ring)
6. Jineteo de yegua (bareback mare riding)
7. Manganas a pie (forefooting on foot)
8. Manganas a caballo (forefooting on horseback)
9. Paso de la muerte (the "pass of death")

The terna counts as two events, so a team earns ten scores. Women's precision drill teams compete separately; see what escaramuza charra is.

The coleadero runs in the manga, the lienzo's long lane: 60 meters long, at least 12 meters wide, opening into a round ring. At the start is the partidero, the gate the steer comes out of.

The cala and the coleadero: one horse, two tests

The cala de caballo, which opens every charreada, is the reining test: fast starts, sliding stops, spins and backing up. The coleadero shows that same rein control at a flat-out run.

A horse that stops well in the cala usually stops well at the end of the lane. One that ignores the rein there will do it with a steer beside it too.

How a coleada works, step by step

Each team sends three coleadores (tailers), and each gets three runs. One run looks like this:

1. Wait at the gate. The charro sits his horse beside the partidero. Once the judge calls the steer ready, he has 20 seconds to ask for its release.
2. Salute. As he meets the steer, within the first ten meters, he touches his hat brim with his right hand.
3. Pat the steer. He must clearly slap its back (the pachón). Touching another spot or a light stroke doesn't count.
4. Take the tail. He grabs it and brings it behind his leg.
5. Wrap it. He swings his leg, stirrup and all, over the tail and pins it against his leg (arcionar). He gets one attempt; needing two or more voids the fall.
6. Drive past and drop. He pushes his horse ahead to swing the steer off balance and tip it over before 60 meters.
7. Stop completely. He halts at the ring's barrier and walks back without punishing the horse.

Only one helper, the arreador or apretador, may push the steer through the first ten meters. A charro who goes without one earns a bonus point.

The team's other two tailers wait along the far fence, in a marked box running from 0 to 20 meters. They may shade or side the steer (ride along to block it from veering off) from outside that box's line or rail, between the 5-meter and 20-meter marks. Coming in before 5 meters costs 4 points, and crossing the 20-meter line voids the run.

How a coleada is scored

Judges don't just score whether the steer falls, but how. The official table:

Bonuses reward an early drop: 3 points before 30 meters, 2 between 30 and 40, and 1 between 40 and 50. If any part of the animal except the tail crosses the 60-meter line as it falls, the run doesn't count. One exception: if the steer rolls over its back past 60 meters and comes back to rest as a media without staying over the line, the run is scored from the fall table.

Penalties mostly cost 2 points each: skipping the salute or the pat, losing the hat, hunching over, or holding the reins in a "bouquet." Wearing gloves, putting resin on the tail or throwing the steer by hand alone means disqualification.

What a great coleada looks like: a clean start, a clear salute and pat, one wrap, a redonda derecha before 30 meters and the horse stopped square at the barrier. That is 15 points from a single run.

What the horse needs

In the coleadero the horse does half the work. A good tailing horse brings three things:

• Speed from a standstill. The steer bolts, and the horse has to catch it in a few strides before the chance to grab the tail is gone.
• Rating. Once alongside, it must match the steer's speed, neither ahead nor behind, so the rider can wrap the tail. Then it has to surge at the right moment to tip the steer.
• A cool head. Stand quietly at the gate, run straight next to another animal and stop completely at the barrier without fighting the bit.

Many charros favor compact, muscular horses such as Quarter Horses or the Azteca for their explosive break. Good hoof care and shoeing matter too.

If the rating part sounds familiar, it's the same skill a heading horse uses in team roping. For the basics of rein control, see riding skills and disciplines.

Coleadero vs. Venezuelan and Colombian coleo

The idea is the same (tail a running steer and tip it over from horseback), but they are different sports:

• Track. The charro lane is 60 meters long. On the Llanos plains, coleo lanes are far longer: the Colombian Coleo Federation's rules call for 250 to 330 meters, divided into scoring zones.
• Who runs. In charreria, one charro works each steer, with one helper. Colombian coleo also sends one rider per turn, with a companion who loses points for touching the bull. Venezuela, by contrast, runs turns of four riders after the same bull.
• What's judged. The charro must complete a fixed routine (salute, pat, wrap, stop) in full charro dress. Coleo mainly rewards bringing the steer down, and where it happens.
• Context. The coleadero is one of nine suertes in a team contest. Coleo is a sport on its own, with its own fairs and championships.

Animal welfare: an open debate

Events with cattle, the coleadero included, are criticized by animal-protection groups. In Colombia, the Constitutional Court ruled in September 2025 that coleo must end after a three-year transition.

Mexican charreria, which UNESCO lists as intangible cultural heritage, continues to compete. The FMCH rulebook includes rules touching on the welfare of steer and horse:

• A minimum steer weight, and officials may swap out a steer with too little tail hair.
• No resin or other substance on the tail.
• A 2-point penalty for punishing the horse with spurs, quirt or bit, or crashing it into the fence.
• A 4-point penalty if the horse shows lameness at any point.

The Coleadero Nacional call goes further, citing animal welfare and care: if a horse suffers a fracture, the competitor is disqualified from his remaining runs.

Coleadero Nacional 2026: what to watch next

This is the format in the official call:

• Qualifiers: Oct. 9, 10, 11, 16, 17, 18, 24 and 25, after the day's last competition.
• Blocks: two per night, up to 15 tailers each. One, two or three advance per block depending on entries.
• Semifinal: Friday, Oct. 30, after the last charreada.
• Final: Sunday, Nov. 1, the top five, after the escaramuza final and before the "AAA" team final. It is sudden death.
• Entry: 15,000 pesos per tailer, 5,000 of which pays for cattle rental. Riders must be federation members and may enter once.
• Prizes: a 2026 Ford F-250 diesel pickup for first; second through fifth split the rest of the pot (20, 11, 6 and 5%).

A few details for fans: this contest gives no bonus for colear a la Lola (crossing the left leg between the saddle horn and the horse's neck while wrapping). Running without a helper earns a point per run, and if a helper comes in, that run is disqualified. Rails will line the first 20 meters, and no one may shade the steer. Ties go first to fewer penalty points, then to more redondas derechas.

The championship draws 171 men's teams, 160 escaramuzas and 15 charros completos, per the FMCH draw. For dates, venues and the full program, see our Charreria National Championship 2026 guide.

Your checklist for watching a coleada like a pro

• Watch for the salute and pat in the first few meters.
• See whether he wraps the tail on the first try.
• Find the 30- and 60-meter marks: that's where points are won and lost.
• Watch the horse at the end: does it stop square and walk back calm?
• Wait for the redonda derecha. It's the fall that brings the stands to their feet.

New to charreria? Start with our glossary and the latest trends.