German Sport Horses are an emerging breed, the outcome of the grouping together of various regional German warmblooded breeds. This group includes several of the regional horse breeds that existed prior to the Soviet era, such as the Brandenburg Warmblood, the Mecklenburg Warmblood and the Thuringian Warmblood. Essentially the name is a mark of quality that helps breeders to promote and sell a German Sport Horse, and also guarantees quality to equestrians when they buy a German Sport Horse. The breeders are united in their desire to produce a powerful yet elegant warmblood with fluid movement, sound conformation and a willing nature.
Breeders who sell a German Sport Horse usually use the key words harmony and serenity when describing their ideal. Whatever their ancestry, the breed should have the power, balance and correct conformation that a sports horse and a riding horse require. German Sport Horses are identified by a brand which shows a snake entwined around an arrow, which was originally the Brandenburg insignia. There are clear benefits for both buyers who buy a German Sports Horse and the breeders in drawing together recognized sports horses under a single name. For example, administration and marketing, including passports, can be centralized yet the horses can still have their region of origin represented in the passport.
Horse breeding in Germany has always been a strongly regional affair. Local breeders were responsible for the development of individual breeds. They used their individual and collective skills and knowledge to develop types of horses according to the needs of each German state. The creation of the German Sport Horse in 2003 marked a deviation from this, as the horse breed associations of the four states of Berlin-Brandenburg, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia created a single studbook to cover all their regional warmblooded breeds. From this time on, all the Warmblooded Horses produced in these states were registered in the German Sport Horse studbook. This reflects a growing interest in the idea of a single German sport horse breed registry, rather than the several breeds of individual states, since there has always been much crossbreeding. As a result, most of the breeds have shared ancestry and are similar performance horses. The history behind this decision dates back to the days of the German Democratic Republic, when all warmblood sport horse types were united into the single breed known as the GDR Elegant Warmblood (Edles Warmblut). After reunification, there was a reversion to the original individual breeds such as the Mecklenburg, the Brandenburg, the Saxon and the Thuringian Warmbloods, along with the Saxon Riding Horse. The decision to unite the breeds under the German Sport Horse name in 2003 meant that breeders could market their horses jointly and rationalize their licencing and auctions. In 2014, the Wuerttemberg, the Bavarian Warmblood and the Zweibruecker breeds joined the German Sport Horse group too. While the breeders all agree on the basic quality that every German Sport Horse should display, discussions between various breed associations and organizations are continuing. The German Sport Horse breed is still a developing concept.
Since German Sport Horses represent the best of the individual warmblooded breeds from all over Germany, they are clearly already an excellent choice for competitive riders in all the major equestrian disciplines. Adopting the German Sport Horse "brand" makes it easier for international buyers and sellers to relate to the quality of the horse.