It is held annually at a different racetrack in the United States or Canada as part of the Breeders' Cup World Championships.
[1] The forerunner for this race was the Washington, D.C. International Stakes at Laurel Park Racecourse.
Inaugurated in 1952, it was raced on turf at 1+1⁄2 miles and drew the best horses from North America and Europe.
Beginning in 2007, the Breeders' Cup developed the Breeders' Cup Challenge, a series of races in each division that allotted automatic qualifying bids to winners of defined races.
Note though that one horse may win multiple challenge races, while other challenge winners will not be entered in the Breeders' Cup for a variety of reasons such as injury or travel considerations.