 The race was first held in 1829, and since 1845 has taken place on the Championship Course on the River Thames in southwest London.The rivalry is a major point of honour between the two universities; it is followed throughout the United Kingdom and, as of 2015, broadcast worldwide.Oxford went into the race as reigning champions, having won the 1909 race by lengths, and led overall with 35 victories to Cambridge's 30 (excluding the "dead heat" of 1877).