With preparations for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games 2010 well under way, the time has come to think of the following edition, the FEI World Equestrian Games 2014.

To ensure a clear and fair process in the allocation of the seventh FEI World Equestrian Games, the following procedure has been put in place.

Upon receipt of a letter of intent from the National Federation (NF) interested in hosting the Games, the contract, which includes the Organizing Procedures, is forwarded to the NF and Organizer. This contract specifies the terms of the bid, as well as the financial and technical obligations, and comes into force on the day of allocation.

In the period until October 2008, any bidders will be visited by the FEI management and technical experts to assess their technical and commercial capabilities as well as to assist the NF and Organizer in the preparation of their bid and clarify any issues that may arise with the contract.

Formal bids should be finalized by October 2008; the contract will be signed during the FEI General Assembly in November 2008. Only NFs and Organizers that sign the contract will be allowed to go forward.

The bids will then be circulated to the FEI Bureau. Bidders will be asked to make a formal presentation prior to the decision by the Bureau on the host Organizer, which will be taken in the spring of 2009.

So far, the FEI has received one formal letter of intent. It has come from the French Equestrian Federation with a proposal to stage the FEI World Equestrian Games 2014 in the region of Basse-Normandie in Northern France with Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO), organizers of the world’s biggest cycling race Tour de France and the annual off-road race The Dakar Rally, as the Organizer. The FEI has had various working contacts with the French NF on this subject.