Who Are The Most Expensive Horse Racing Stallions In 2025?

The guiding principle for breeding winning racehorses has always been best expressed as “breed the best to the best and hope for the best”, so picking the right sire is one of the key building blocks to producing a top foal. 

Dubawi and Frankel currently lead the way when it comes to the world’s most expensive stallions. The pair command a stud fee of £350,000, but are closely followed by Wootton Bassett, whose fee of €300,000 makes him the most expensive sire in Ireland.

Biggest Stud Fees In Horse Racing:

• Dubawi – £350,000
• Frankel – £350,000
• Wootton Bassett – €300,000
• Sea The Stars – €250,000

Here, we take a more in-depth look at the stallions that attract the biggest stud fees and why they are so successful.

DUBAWI (Dalham Hall Stud, Newmarket, UK)

At the age of 23, Dubawi is now the elder statesman of the breeding world, but alongside Frankel, he is still the world’s joint most expensive sire.

He sired 25 stakes winners in Europe during 2024, more than any other sire, and 33 overall worldwide.

The Godolphin operation continue to use him on a regular basis, with Charlie Appelby’s yard in particular, full of talented Dubawi offspring.

In July 2025, Delacroix, a three-year-old son of Dubawi, landed his first Group 1 victory in a thrilling renewal of the Eclipse Stakes at Sandown. He returned at odds of 3/1 in our horse racing betting.

At the time of writing, Dubawi has sired 18 Black Type winners in 2025. They are led by Group 1 winners Lead Artist and Walk Of Stars as well as Group winners Rebel’s Romance, Imperial Emperor, Dubai Future, and Zanzoun.

FRANKEL (Banstead Manor Stud, Newmarket, UK)

Born in 2008, Frankel is merely a youngster compared to Dubawi, but just like he did on the racecourse, he is still producing the goods.

Frankel is the fastest stallion to hit 100 Group/Graded stakes winners in history, and his European crop includes the winners of the Derby (Adayar), 2,000 Guineas (Chaldean), Oaks (Anapurna and Soul Sister), St Leger (Logician and Hurricane Lane) and Arc (Alpinista).

He is simply world class, the world over, with an incredible 11% Group winners to runners and 17% blacktype winners to runners. Trained by the late Sir Henry Cecil, he is widely regarded as the greatest racehorse of all-time.

WOOTTON BASSETT (Coolmore Stud, IRE)

Wootton Bassett ended 2024 as Europe’s leading 2-y-o sire with prize-money of over £2.65 million. He produced 13 x 2-y-o stakes winners overall, four at Group 1 level and ten in Pattern races. The Pattern figure represented a new record,  beating the previous high of seven held jointly by Galileo and Danehill.

His leading progeny include Group 1 scorers – Almanzor (Irish Champion Stakes, Prix du Jockey Club, Champion Stakes), King Of Steel (Champion Stakes), Unquestionable (Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf), Wooded (Prix de l’Abbaye), Audarya (Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf & Prix Jean Romanet), Bucanero Fuerte (Phoenix Stakes), Al Riffa (National Stakes & Grosser Preis Von Berlin), Zellie (Prix Marcel Boussac), Incarville (Prix Saint-Alary), Henri Matisse (Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf & Poule d’Essai des Pouliches), Camille Pissarro (Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere & Prix du Jockey Club), Tennessee Stud (Criterium de Saint-Cloud), Twain (Criterium International), Royal Patronage (Canterbury Stakes), Whirl (Pretty Polly Stakes).

SEA THE STARS (Gilltown Stud, IRE)

A former great himself, Sea the Stars is a popular pick to cover the mares with a fee of €250,000.

To date, Gilltown Stud’s esteemed resident lays claim to 22 Group 1 winners and 135 Stakes winners overall, including greats such as Baaeed, Stradivarius and Crystal Ocean. His progeny are always popular picks in the betting markets.