On Friday 5 and Saturday 6 February 2027, King Abdulaziz Racecourse in Riyadh hosts the Saudi Cup meeting, the centrepiece of the Kingdom's racing season and one of the richest race days in the world. The meeting draws horses, owners and spectators from Europe, America, Japan and across the Gulf, and the stands fill with an audience that dresses with real intent. The organisers' code comes first, and then the weather.

The Jockey Club of Saudi Arabia publishes a dress code each season, and the 2027 version is expected closer to the date. In recent years it has encouraged guests to dress for the occasion: suits with jackets for men, an equally formal approach for women, and a modest approach to lengths and fabrics in keeping with Saudi traditions. Traditional garments, including the abaya, the thobe and other formal national dress, are welcome. The code differs slightly between the general and the premium enclosures, so it is worth reading the version for the ticket in hand.

February in Riyadh is the heart of the cool season. Afternoons are typically warm and dry, often in the low to mid twenties Celsius, while the evenings, when the feature races run under the lights, can drop into the low teens. A jacket that seems excessive at three o'clock will be welcome by eight. This makes the shirt beneath it the most important decision of the day.

For men, a linen shirt under a tailored jacket gives the formality the code asks for while keeping the afternoon comfortable. The Laos Long Sleeve Linen Shirt in Dark Blue sits well beneath a blazer and still looks complete when the jacket comes off in the warm hours; the Monte-Carlo Male in Vanille, finished in walnut, gives a lighter palette. PP Trousers 100% Linen in Sapphire Blue complete the look. The shirts and trousers are in the men's collection. For the jacket itself, the Monaco Blazer and the Spetses Blazer, both in the PP blazer guide, are the PP options.

Shoes are part of the occasion. The PP velvet loafers, handmade in Italy with leather soles, have the polish of evening wear without the stiffness of a formal lace-up; the Blue Velvet Shoes in particular pair well with a dark jacket. They are shown in the PP shoes collection.

For women, the code's emphasis on modest lengths sets the shape of the outfit: sleeves to the wrist or near it, hems to the ankle, cuts that are loose rather than fitted. The PP linen blouse in Orchid, certified Belgian linen, worn with a long skirt or long wide trousers of her own, meets that standard and holds its colour well against the white of the grandstand. A tailored coat or an embroidered abaya over it carries the look into the evening. The Amelia linen dress shirt, being thigh length, belongs to other days of a Riyadh visit rather than the racecourse. The blouse is in the women's linen collection.

Race meetings everywhere share some sense: flat or block heels on the lawns, sunglasses for the afternoon, and a light layer for the moment the sun goes. The wider etiquette of the turf is set out in what to wear to the races.

A visit for the Saudi Cup is often combined with a few days in the capital and the restored mud-brick district of At-Turaif in Diriyah, a UNESCO World Heritage site on the city's edge. What to wear in Riyadh covers the city itself, and what to wear in Riyadh for women the women's side of it.

The Saudi Cup was first run in February 2020, on dirt, over 1,800 metres. In a few short years it has joined the races that the sport's great stables plan their winters around.

Read more: What to Wear in Diriyah  ·  Linen in Riyadh