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When the first-ever St. Regis polo resort opens in 2017, The St. Regis Dubai Al Habtoor Polo Resort & Club will mark a new era in a longstanding association between the St. Regis brand and this captivating sport, whose ties trace back to the turn of the 20th century.
At the height of the Gilded Age, polo matches on Manhattan’s Governors Island were the highlight of the New York social scene, where the St. Regis’ founding family, the Astors, were a prominent fixture. Polo players and spectators often stayed at The St. Regis New York, thus paving the way for a distinctive culture that is synonymous with today’s brand.
Throughout the 1900s, polo’s recognition began to grow in the United States, with the military expanding the game to train officers, while it simultaneously gained popularity as an Olympic sport. However during World War II, all horses were returned to military bases and ordered to duty. The war diminished the number of players and polo clubs in America, but in the 1950s and 1960s polo began to grow again.
It wasn’t until 2007, however, that the St. Regis brand recognized the significance of the distinguished sport. With the Mercedes-Benz Polo Challenge at Bridgehampton Polo in the Hamptons in place, St. Regis Hotels & Resorts set out to revive its longstanding affiliation with the game.
Signature St. Regis Luxury
The legendary St. Regis Butler Service was on hand to serve the signature Bloody Mary during the match. And, as a tribute to St. Regis style, several design elements were incorporated into the venue, evoking the brand’s signature luxury, including a replica of The St. Regis New York’s famed Maxfield Parrish Old King Cole mural in the main tent’s bar.
From that point on, the brand has developed a strong presence at premier polo matches all over the world, and has since gone on to sponsor a St. Regis team, captained by Argentinean polo professional Ignacio “Nacho” Figueras — considered the world’s most recognized polo player. And once The St. Regis Dubai Al Habtoor Polo Resort & Club opens in 2017, the brand will offer polo enthusiasts an extraordinary experience like never before.
Discover more about polo and the rules of the game at stregispolo.com.
