The CDI System and Star Ratings

A CDI (Concours de Dressage International) is an international dressage competition run under FEI rules, rated from one star to five by prize money and status. The star system states at a glance what level of sport a show hosts, who can enter, and what a result there is worth, in ranking points and, indirectly, in the market value of the horse.

The star ratings

CDI1*: Small Tour (Prix St Georges and Intermediate I). The entry level of international sport and the gateway show for combinations moving up from national competition. Modest or no prize money requirements.

CDI2*: typically adds the Medium Tour (Intermediate A, B and II). The FEI rules also permit Big Tour classes at two-star level, though a CDI2* Grand Prix does not count toward championship minimum-eligibility scores.

CDI3*: the Big Tour (Grand Prix) with full championship-eligible status. Prize money sits in the lowest Big Tour band; the exact figures are set in Swiss francs in the FEI Dressage Rules and revised periodically. Many CDI3* shows run small tour and youth classes alongside.

CDI4*: Big Tour competition in the middle prize band, attracting strong international fields.

CDI5*: the elite tier: a high minimum prize fund with no ceiling, and fields drawn from the top of the world ranking. Only a handful of CDI5* fixtures exist each year (Aachen and Rotterdam are the archetypes), and competing at one means being among the world’s best Grand Prix combinations.

How a CDI schedules its tours

Within a star rating, the FEI’s scheduling rules fix how the tours are built. The Small Tour opens with the Prix St Georges, which must be open to all entered horses; the Intermediate I may then be open to all or, when scheduled as the final test, restricted to the best six to eighteen combinations from the Prix St Georges, and the Intermediate I Freestyle to the leading combinations subject to a minimum qualification score. A Medium Tour comprises two or three of its tests, each ridden at most once and in progressive order of difficulty, with the first competition open to all. The Big Tour runs the Grand Prix as its qualifying competition, followed by a Grand Prix Special or a Grand Prix Freestyle (at the larger shows, both) as stated in the schedule. A horse competes in one tour at a show, so a CDI’s schedule reads as parallel ladders: the same weekend hosts distinct small tour, medium tour, big tour and youth competitions.

CDI-W: World Cup qualifiers

A CDI-W is a CDI with FEI Dressage World Cup qualifying status. Riders collect points at CDI-W events through the indoor season (roughly October to April in the Northern Hemisphere leagues), toward qualification for the World Cup Final each spring. World Cup competition is decided in the Freestyle, and qualifiers use the Short Grand Prix, the condensed test introduced for the circuit, as the preceding set test; a minimum score of 68% in a qualifier Freestyle is required for the result to count. The Final itself runs a Grand Prix followed by the Freestyle, and the Freestyle winner is the World Cup champion. CDI-W shows are typically indoor fixtures and among the best-attended events of the winter.

CDIO: Nations Cups

A CDIO (Concours de Dressage International Officiel) adds the defining feature of a team competition: the Nations Cup. Each country fields a team, the best scores count toward the team total, and the fixture combines individual classes with national pride. CDIOs run at 2* through 5* level, are rarer than ordinary CDIs, and carry particular weight for riders building a case for championship team selection.

Youth CDIs

International youth competition mirrors the FEI youth divisions: CDIP for pony riders, CDICh for children, CDIJ for juniors (tests around Advanced Medium / Third–Fourth Level standard), CDIY for young riders (Prix St Georges standard) and CDIU25 (Intermediate II and the U25 Grand Prix). A single show frequently carries several designations in one title (a CDI3* / CDIY / CDIJ runs senior, young rider and junior competitions in parallel). Youth CDIs and their championships are the sport’s development pipeline; the top youth riders arrive in senior sport with years of international mileage already banked.

Prize money and the financial reality

Prize money scales with the stars: a class win at a small CDI may be worth a few hundred to a couple of thousand euros, while a CDI5* Grand Prix win can run to tens of thousands. Set against entries, travel, stabling and the cost of keeping a Grand Prix horse in work, the arithmetic almost never favours the rider: elite dressage is financed by owners and sponsors, not winnings. The economics of owning and campaigning a horse at this level are covered in the cost of ownership.

Entries, rankings and access

Entries to CDIs go through the rider’s national federation, and places are limited. Access to the higher tiers is progressive in practice:

• CDI1/2**: open to qualified combinations; the proving ground.
• CDI3*: consistent Big Tour scores expected; competitive fields.
• CDI4/5**: fields shaped by the FEI World Ranking and organiser invitations; the top shows are effectively invitation-only.

The FEI Dressage World Ranking is calculated from CDI results: higher stars and better placings earn more points, with a combination’s best results over the prior twelve months counting. Rankings are updated monthly and feed back into invitations, creating the ladder by which combinations climb from their first CDI1* to the five-star circuit.

For horses, a CDI record is the most transparent documentation the sport offers: every international start and score is published in the FEI’s results database, which is why FEI results anchor the verification hierarchy described in reading a competition record.

The regional leagues

The World Cup circuit and the CDI calendar are organised into regional leagues: the Western European League (the densest and most competitive, hosting most of the 4* and 5* fixtures), the Central European League, the North American League and the Pacific league. Geography shapes careers: a rider based in the Netherlands can reach a dozen CDIs within a day’s drive, one reason serious buyers and competitors gravitate to the European horse-sport heartland, while riders elsewhere budget for intercontinental travel to reach the same sport.

Sources

• Fédération Équestre Internationale — FEI Dressage Rules, 26th edition (star categories, prize money bands), 2026. https://inside.fei.org/fei/disc/dressage/rules
• Fédération Équestre Internationale — Dressage Rules (tour scheduling), 2022 revision annex. https://inside.fei.org/system/files/16.2_GA%202022_Annex%2016.2_DRESSAGE%20FULL%20RULES_0.pdf
• Fédération Équestre Internationale — Dressage Tests (Short Grand Prix), 2026. https://inside.fei.org/fei/your-role/organisers/dressage/tests
• Wikipedia — Dressage World Cup (Final format and qualification minimum), 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dressage_World_Cup