Staff report
The 122nd Kentucky State Fair drew 642,240 attendees, marking the fair’s highest overall attendance in more than two decades.
This year’s fair celebrated Kentucky’s agriculture industry and built on the recent growth of Kentucky’s tourism industry, which has had its best year on record for economic impact for four consecutive years. The 11-day event welcomed travelers and Kentuckians from all 120 counties to celebrate the Commonwealth’s agriculture, traditions and America’s 250th anniversary.
“Team Kentucky is continuing to break records and achieve historic success,” said Gov. Andy Beshear. “This year’s fair is a credit to our state’s unmatched agriculture industry, our record-breaking tourism industry, and the team at Kentucky Venues who helped make this event so special.”
“For 122 years this fair has been a place where all 120 counties come together, and that tradition is worth protecting,” said Michael E. Berry, interim president and CEO of Kentucky Venues. “Setting our best attendance mark in more than two decades, with nearly 40,000 entries and record sponsorship support, shows how Kentuckians connect with our mission.”
The fair and the World’s Championship Horse Show drew 38,799 combined entries. New this year, classes celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary were offered across eight departments, from patriotic baking and photography to textiles and wine, along with a new glasswork section in Fine Arts.
Held in conjunction with the fair, the World’s Championship Horse Show brought the world’s best saddlebreds, hackneys and roadsters to Freedom Hall. Attendees and participants from as far as Germany and South Africa filled the stands as a record-breaking number of horses competed for more than $1 million in prize money and awards.
2026 fairgoers also experienced the final chapter in the West Wing, West Hall and Pavilion, as 2026 marks the last Kentucky State Fair held in those exhibition buildings. The 2027 fair will debut a new facility at the Kentucky Exposition Center, with square footage equal to six football fields and amenities designed to enhance the exhibitor and attendee experience.
The 123rd Kentucky State Fair is set for August 19-29 with the theme “All the Fair You Can Bear.”