The event – which is hugely popular with spectators - was due to take place on Sunday, August 2.
The famous raft race is organised by the Lewes and District Round Table to raise funds for Sussex Search and Rescue and Macmillan Cancer Support. Organisers hope to run it again next year. It traditionally begins at Malling Fields and ends at Newhaven.
There has already been concern expressed by local people over the decision. Sarah Mann said: "There's been so little publicity for the event. I'm not surprised there haven't been many entries."
And Stu Read said: "It's been going on for 50 years folks - an annual events that everyone in town looked forward to." While Melanie Jane Yates offered professional marketing help saying: "Maybe I can write some fun case studies on past participants which your marketing team can use to launch 2027 with a bang!"
A Round Table spokesperson replied: "We've been putting out regular social media posts for months across our page, Lewes, Newhaven, Seaford and Uckfield social media groups. We've also put flyers out across local communities and builders' merchants. We sent out hundreds of emails for potential entries and unfortunately only got four replies."
And in a social media post, they apologised and said they hoped to come back ‘bigger and stronger’ in 2027.
”It is with great sadness that we have made the difficult decision to cancel the 2026 Lewes to Newhaven Raft Race.
For the first time in the event’s history, we have had to cancel due to a lack of entries.
This is not a decision we have taken lightly. The Raft Race relies on a healthy number of participants to make the event financially viable and to create the exciting, competitive spectacle that so many people have enjoyed over the years.
We would like to offer our sincere apologies and thanks to everyone who entered this year, especially those who had already invested their time, effort and money into building their rafts. We are equally grateful to all of our fantastic sponsors for their continued support and understanding.
Whilst thousands of people line the river each year to cheer on the competitors, we have also seen a steady decline in donations on the day. Combined with the reduced number of entries, this means we can no longer rely on entry fees, sponsorship and public donations to cover the costs of running the event.”