Goffs

What Goffs does

Goffs is one of Europe's premier thoroughbred bloodstock auction houses, founded in 1866 when Robert J. Goff was appointed Official Auctioneer to the Turf Club in Ireland. The company operates through three physical sales complexes: the headquarters at Kildare Paddocks in Ireland, the UK Sales Complex at Doncaster, and the UK Head Office in Hawick, complemented by GoffsGo, an always-on 24/7 online auction platform that allows vendors to list horses and begin bidding within 24 hours of entry. Goffs runs 26 annual sales events including flagship offerings such as the Orby Sale (Irish National Yearling Sale), Breeze Up Sale, Arkle Sale, November Sale, and Goffs London Sale held at Kensington Palace Gardens, serving international buyers from the USA, Japan, Australasia, France, Italy, Germany, and Scandinavia through a dedicated in-house agent network of regional representatives.

Goffs generates revenue primarily through transaction-based commissions, charging a 1.5% vendor commission (claimed as the lowest in the world) and 6% buyer's commission on hammer prices, with a separate £49 entry fee per lot for GoffsGo online sales. The company has processed €246m in annual ring turnover, a metric that reflects gross merchandise value rather than commission income, with recent Ireland-only annual turnover of €147.8m (2024) and €164.9m (2025). Customer segments include horse breeders and vendors (SMB to large commercial operations), bloodstock agents and trainers, horse owners and racing syndicates, and international buyers, with the Goffs Two Million Series (€2m in bonuses) and Harry's 750 Series (£750,000 in bonuses) designed to incentivize purchases from their graduates. The business model is event-driven, with 26 scheduled sales per year supplemented by continuous GoffsGo listings.

The firm operates as Robert J Goff & Co plc, an Irish public limited company that is privately held, with subsidiaries including Goffs UK Ltd and Goffs Country Property Consultants Ltd. Adjacent businesses include Goffs Property (country property consulting) and The Club at Goffs (a luxury boutique hotel at Kildare Paddocks), positioning the company as an integrated bloodstock and lifestyle services platform rather than a pure auction operator. The technology stack centers on the GoffsGo digital platform with timed auctions, flexible bid-extension rules, vendor-verified veterinary certificates, and secure transaction processing.

Name

Goffs

Legal name

Robert J Goff & Co plc

Website

https://goffs.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1866

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Goffs is Ireland's premier thoroughbred bloodstock auction house, founded in 1866, operating 26 annual sales across Ireland, the UK, and online via GoffsGo. It serves breeders, trainers, bloodstock agents, and international racing owners through commission-based auction transactions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Kildare

HQ country

Ireland

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Auction Commission: Goffs charges commission on all sales conducted through their auctions. Vendors pay 1.5% commission (claimed as the lowest vendor commission in the world), while buyers pay 6% commission on hammer prices.
2. GoffsGo Entry Fees: GoffsGo charges a £49 entry fee per lot, payable upfront regardless of whether the horse sells. This provides a baseline revenue stream independent of sale outcomes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Goffs is a premier thoroughbred bloodstock auction house that conducts live physical sales of horses at its Kildare (Ireland) and Doncaster (UK) sales complexes, complemented by the GoffsGo 24/7 online auction platform for on-demand individual horse sales. The company serves breeders (vendors), bloodstock agents, trainers, and racing owners by facilitating horse transactions through traditional ring auctions and timed online auctions, charging vendor and buyer commissions plus entry fees, and offering bonus prize-money incentive programs.

Product overview

Goffs is a leading international auction house for thoroughbred horses, operating both traditional in-person sales and the GoffsGo online platform. The company offers a comprehensive portfolio including physical sale events (Orby Sale, Breeze Up Sale, Arkle Sale, London Sale, November Sale), the always-on GoffsGo online auction platform, and incentive programs (Goffs Two Million Series, Harry's 750 Series). Additional services include Goffs TV for media content, Goffs Property for real estate, and The Club at Goffs for hospitality. The company conducts sales across Ireland and the UK, serving the global bloodstock industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GoffsGo: An always-on, 24/7 online thoroughbred auction platform allowing individual horse sales on demand.
• Goffs Property
• The Club At Goffs
• Goffs TV
• Goffs Repository

Products and services

• GoffsGo Online Auction Platform

Quantifiable outcome

• 90% clearance rate achieved at Orby Book 1 2025
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and significant.

• Society of International Thoroughbred Auctioneers (SITA)coreOthersGoffs is a founding member of the Society of International Thoroughbred Auctioneers (SITA), an industry body establishing standards for thoroughbred auctioneers globally.
• Dubai Racing ClubsignificantStrategic or Co-development PartnerIn 2023, Goffs was chosen by the Dubai Racing Club to conduct the first ever Breeze Up Sale in the Middle East, expanding their international footprint.
• Irish Thoroughbred MarketingcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerStrategic marketing partnership working in tandem with Goffs to attract international and domestic buyers to sales events, contributing to buyer diversification and record results at Orby Sales.
• ULYSSIA and Fitzwilliam SportssignificantGTM or Marketing PartnerJoint title partners for the Goffs London Sale 2026, held at Kensington Palace Gardens on the eve of Royal Ascot.
• Harry's 750 Series PartnerscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Harry's 750 Series featuring £250,000 Harry's Quarter Million Bonus Series and £500,000 Harry's Half Million, offering £750,000 total prize money for eligible Premier Sale graduates.
• Goffs Two Million Series PartnerscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerSeries offering €2,000,000 in bonuses with €1M in bonuses in Ireland and UK and €1M in the Goffs Million, rewarding purchasers of Orby Sale yearlings who win designated races.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Inglis: William Inglis & Son is a long-established Australian bloodstock auction house (founded 1867, similar heritage to Goffs) conducting yearling, broodmare, and weanling sales. Comparable in auction model and customer base, but geographically focused on Australia.
• Baden-Badener Auktionsgesellschaft (BBAG): Germany's leading thoroughbred auction house based in Iffezheim/Baden-Baden, conducting yearling and breeding stock sales. Comparable to Goffs in European auction model and bloodstock industry focus, but serving primarily the German-speaking market.
• Magic Millions: Australia's leading thoroughbred auction house based on the Gold Coast, holding the famous Magic Millions Yearling Sale and race day. Comparable in business model (auction + bonus race series) and product offering, but operating primarily in the Australian and Asia-Pacific market rather than Europe.
• Ocala Breeders' Sales Company (OBS): A leading US two-year-old-in-training and thoroughbred auction house based in Ocala, Florida. Comparable as a specialty thoroughbred auctioneer with similar commission-based revenue, but focused on the US breeze-up and yearling segments.

Broad incumbents

• Fasig-Tipton: Historic North American thoroughbred auction house founded in 1898, conducting yearling, two-year-old, and mixed sales. Comparable to Goffs in auctioneering business model and breed focus, but primarily serving the US buyer and vendor market.
• Keeneland: The leading North American thoroughbred auction house and racecourse in Lexington, Kentucky. Comparable as a premier bloodstock auctioneer with similar commission-based revenue model and event-driven sales calendar, but operating at significantly larger scale in the US market.

Direct peers

• Arqana: France's premier thoroughbred auction house based in Deauville, offering yearling, breeze-up, and breeding stock sales. Directly comparable to Goffs in product mix, customer base, and event-driven auction model, serving the French and broader European bloodstock market.
• Tattersalls: The dominant UK/European thoroughbred auction house, headquartered in Newmarket, England. Directly comparable to Goffs in business model, target market (breeders, owners, trainers), and service offering (yearling, foal, and breeze-up sales), but with larger catalogue volumes and deeper international buyer pools.

Others

• Irish Thoroughbred Marketing: State-supported marketing body promoting Irish thoroughbred horses internationally. A key GTM partner to Goffs (core strategic tier) rather than a competitor, but operates in the adjacent buyer-recruitment and brand-marketing layer of the bloodstock value chain.
• Doncaster Bloodstock Sales (historical): The legacy UK auction house that merged with Goffs in 2013 — referenced for historical context as the integration partner that formed today's Goffs UK operations, rather than a current competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/GoffsDBS
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/GoffsIreland
• Facebookfacebook.com/177345743568
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/goffs
• Instagraminstagram.com/goffs1866

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Goffs