What Is Crufts? Dates, Location, and How to Attend the Dog Show

Crufts is the annual dog show staged by The Royal Kennel Club, and the 2027 edition runs 4–7 March 2027 at the NEC Birmingham. You can attend by buying official tickets through the Crufts website, follow the action through official livestreams and results, or enter a dog if it meets the qualification requirements published by the Kennel Club. The sections below cover each route, plus what actually happens across the four days.

What Crufts is and what happens there

Crufts is described by its organiser as "The World's Greatest Dog Show." It combines breed judging with canine activities such as dog agility, flyball, heelwork to music, and a dog grooming competition, and it culminates in the Best in Show award. Beyond the show itself, the Royal Kennel Club presents Crufts as a year-round community for dog owners, with a Crufts Club, a blog, social channels, and Crufts Radio carrying winner and celebrity interviews.

If you are deciding whether a visit is worth it, the practical question is which day to choose — the programme is split by breed group, so the answer depends on which dogs you want to see.

2027 dates and daily schedule

The show runs across four days, each assigned to specific breed groups:

The venue is the NEC Birmingham. The site also lists Best in Show as part of the event, though the page evidence does not state which day it is held — check the official schedule before booking if that is your main reason for going.

How to use this: if you want to watch a particular breed, find its group in the table and book that day. Sunday's Utility and Toy grouping is the last day of the show.

How to attend: tickets and planning

Tickets are sold as official tickets through the Crufts website. The site does not publish prices or payment details in the material available, so confirm cost, any booking fees, and whether tickets are day-specific or valid across multiple days on the official ticket page before you commit.

For planning, the site points visitors to NEC visitor information alongside the event schedule. A sensible order is:

1. Choose your day using the breed-group table above.
2. Buy tickets from the official Crufts site rather than a reseller.
3. Check the NEC visitor information for travel and venue details.
4. Review the schedule closer to the date, since timings within each day are not given on the page evidence.

Common pitfall: assuming any day gives you the full show. Because groups are spread across four days, a single-day ticket will only show you that day's breeds and whatever activities run alongside them.

How dogs qualify to compete

Qualification for Crufts 2027 is open, and the official site directs owners to the entry requirements and closing dates. The page evidence confirms that qualification details and closing dates exist but does not list the specific criteria or deadlines, so anyone intending to enter should read the qualification page directly and note the closing date early — missing it closes the route for that year regardless of the dog's record.

Following Crufts without attending

Several official channels cover the show remotely:

• Livestreams and video: Crufts runs a YouTube channel with livestreams plus a library of new and archive videos.
• Results and schedules: competition results and schedules are published on the official site.
• Crufts Radio: audio coverage including winner and celebrity interviews.
• Community and news: the Crufts Club, the blog, and social channels (the site cites an audience of over 3 million followers) carry updates through the year, including stories such as the Hero Dog Award finalists.

This route suits anyone who wants specific competition coverage — for example, watching agility or flyball finals — without travelling to Birmingham.

Quick answers

• When is Crufts 2027? 4–7 March 2027.
• Where is it? The NEC Birmingham.
• Who runs it? The Royal Kennel Club.
• How do I get tickets? Through the official Crufts website; prices are not stated in the available material.
• Can my dog compete? Only if it meets the published qualification requirements and is entered before the closing date.
• Can I watch from home? Yes — official livestreams, results, and Crufts Radio.