During the 1950s and 60s, the Thoroughbred Breeders’ Associations of Britain and Ireland (who shared a Stud Book, the GSB) used to meet on a regular basis to discuss mutual issues. France joined them in 1968. This “Tripartite Group” met intermittently until 1973 with the venue alternating between the three countries. A representative from the USA joined shortly afterwards in 1974. The group was then re-named The International Breeders’ Meeting and met intermittently for the next three decades.​

The whole purpose of these early meetings was to discuss problems common to all of those countries; to exchange information on equine diseases; to attempt to bring in uniform cataloguing standards, horse identification documents, etc. and generally to obtain a better understanding of the breeding industry in each country.

At the 25th anniversary meeting (in 2012, held in Newmarket, GB) the group had expanded to include member countries from six continents, and it was decided to formalise its structure and re-name it The International Thoroughbred Breeders’ Federation (ITBF). The ITBF Mission Statement was then also agreed.