Eventing is to hold its first Nations Cup series, which the FEI hopes will attract top name riders from all around Europe.

This new three-star competition will make its debut at Fontainebleau, France, on March 22-25 and is to be run under FEI eventing rules.

Teams will accumulate points throughout the series to find the winning nation.

The new six-leg series, which will take place on a trial basis this year, is open to all nations fielding one team composed of three or four riders at each leg.

Houghton Hall (GBR) will host the second leg on May 24-27, followed by Strzegom on June 1-3 and Aachen on July 3-8. The series then heads to Montelibretti on September 21-23 , with the last leg in Boekelo on October 11-14 .

"We are extremely excited to be hosting the opening leg of the FEI's very first team eventing series at Fontainebleau's world-famous Grand Parquet next month," said Francois Lucas, president of CREIF (Comité Régional d'Equitation d'Ile de France). "We will see some of the circuit's best-known eventing riders come together at Fontainebleau and this will certainly add another level of excitement for spectators."

Mike Etherington-Smith, chief executive of British Eventing (BE), has been working with the FEI Eventing committee to develop the event.

He said: "This exciting new idea for a team competition at three-star level, which is open to all nations, has taken some time to pull together.

"We all very much hope that it will capture the interest and imagination of national federations, riders, organising committees, sponsors and the media. The FEI Nations Cup Eventing series is also seen as an exciting opportunity for riders to gain valuable team experience, and for national nederations to use it to improve performance as well as adding an interesting dimension to the sport."