Balanz Capital are the 2026 Cartier Queen’s Cup champions. On Sunday 14 June, they beat Aureus 17-7 in the final on the Queen’s Ground at Guards Polo Club, in front of a sold-out crowd.
A dominant final
Balanz Capital led 10-5 at half-time and pulled away in the second half. Their team was Claudio Porcel, Camilo “Jeta” Castagnola, Ned Hine and Lorenzo Chavanne. Castagnola was named the Cartier most valuable player, and Chavanne was the tournament’s top scorer, with eight goals in the final. Aureus, who were Jake Coventry, Mark Tomlinson, Diego Cavanagh and Teo Lacau, never found a way to slow them down. In the Cartier Trophy, Akasha beat Gaston 10-9.
Balanz Capital were unbeaten until the final, and the win follows their Trippetts Challenge victory last month. The combination of Chavanne and Castagnola looks as strong as any in the game at present.
Semi-final drama
The route to the final was far from easy. In the semi-finals on Wednesday 10 June, Aureus beat La Dolfina/Marques de Riscal after a 10-10 draw and an extra chukka. In the other, Balanz Capital beat Dubai after an extra chukka as well, with Chavanne scoring the winning penalty. Two extra-time semi-finals in one afternoon is something you do not see every year.
Elsewhere in England
At Beaufort Polo Club on Saturday 13 June, England beat New Zealand 7-4.5 in the Golden Jubilee, part of the Beaufort International. The England team was Ollie Cudmore, Jack Aldridge, Toby Bradshaw and Ed Banner-Eve, rated at 14 goals, against a New Zealand side at 13 that included JP Clarkin.
The Gold Cup draw
At Cowdray House on Tuesday 9 June, the draw was held for the British Open Polo Championship for the Cowdray Gold Cup, now sponsored by St. Regis. Nineteen teams have entered the 70th anniversary of the tournament, which was first played in 1956. They are divided into League A, with five teams, and Groups B to E, with three or four each, with crossover fixtures. Five seeds were chosen based on Queen’s Cup results.
- Start: Tuesday 23 June
- Final: Sunday 19 July
- Ladies: the British Ladies Open final will be played the same morning
With Balanz Capital as the Queen’s Cup winners and the form team of the season so far, they will be the ones to beat. Still, the Gold Cup has a long league phase and a lot can happen.
We will preview the Gold Cup and cover the Warwickshire Cup next week.
Sources: Polo Times (Queen’s Cup final), Polo Times (semi-finals), Polo Times (Gold Cup draw)
