The MANILA JOCKEY CLUB (MJC), the first horseracing club in Southeast Asia, was formed in the summer of 1867 by a group of 100 sportsmen led by Jose de la Gandara y Navarro, the Spanish Governor General of the Philippines. These socio fundadores were from affluent Filipino, Spanish, and English families, leading lights in business and government. Some of the names – Ayala, Zobel, Tuason, Elizalde – still dominate local business to this day.
In 1912 the Club built the San Lazaro Hippodrome on a 17-hectare property in Tayuman, Manila. In 1937, what had been a social organization was formally incorporated as the Manila Jockey Club Inc., and a more businesslike management style was adopted. In 1957, shares of stock were listed in the Manila Stock Exchange, and further modernization of the Club took place.
In 1995, MJC was acquired by its present owners headed by Atty. Alfonso R. Reyno Jr. Under the new management, more significant achievements took place, among them the construction in 2003 of a world-class racetrack, the San Lazaro Leisure Park, located on a 77-hectare site in Carmona, Cavite.
