Sailing's big events explained: the America's Cup and SailGP

Most people notice top-level sailing only when a clip of a boat flying above the water goes around. Behind those clips are two different competitions. The America's Cup is an old, irregular challenge between yacht clubs that builds for years toward one head-to-head series. SailGP is a yearly championship with national teams racing identical boats in a different city most months. This guide explains how each works, what the boats are, and how to keep up without being a sailor.

The short version

• The America's Cup is a challenge trophy first raced for in 1851. A defending team and one challenger meet in a head-to-head series, after the challengers have raced each other for the right to take part.
• The next America's Cup is in Naples, Italy, in July 2027. Emirates Team New Zealand is defending, and six challengers have entered.
• SailGP is an annual championship of national teams racing identical foiling catamarans, with events from January to November and a winner-takes-all Grand Final.
• Both use boats that lift out of the water on hydrofoils, so races are fast, short and decided by small mistakes.
• Broadcasts use on-screen graphics for positions and gaps, so you can follow without knowing sailing terms.

What makes these boats different

Traditional racing yachts push through the water. The boats in both events "foil": underwater wings called hydrofoils lift the hull clear of the surface once the boat is moving fast enough. With almost nothing touching the water, drag falls away and the boats can sail faster than the wind that drives them.

The America's Cup boat is the AC75, a 75-foot monohull with foils on arms that swing down on either side. Teams design and build their own boats within a set of rules, so the Cup is partly a design contest. A smaller one-design boat, the AC40, is used for warm-up regattas and for the Youth and Women's America's Cup events.

The SailGP boat is the F50, a 50-foot catamaran with a rigid wing in place of a soft sail. It is one-design: every team races the same boat, so results come down to the crew rather than the budget for engineering.

When a foiling boat drops back into the water, usually during a badly timed turn, it slows sharply. Commentators call it coming off the foils, and in a close race it can decide the result.

How the America's Cup works

Defender and challengers. The Cup is held by a yacht club, which defends it. The defender, working with the first challenger to enter (the Challenger of Record), sets the rules for the next Cup, including the boat and the venue. That is why the format can change a lot from one Cup to the next, and why the gap between Cups varies.

The challenger series. The challengers race each other first, in a series known as the Louis Vuitton Cup. The winner earns the right to race the defender.

The Match. The final is a head-to-head series called the America's Cup Match. In recent Cups, the first team to win seven races has taken the trophy.

Match racing. Each race has just two boats. Before the start, they maneuver around each other to win the better position when the gun goes. The course goes upwind and downwind between marks, and umpires hand out penalties for rule breaches. A boat that leads early can often control the race from the front.

The 2027 America's Cup in Naples. Emirates Team New Zealand, which won in 2017, 2021 and 2024, is defending. The first race of the Match is scheduled for July 10, 2027, in the Bay of Naples. The Royal Yacht Squadron of Britain is Challenger of Record. As of mid-2026, the challengers were teams from Britain, Italy, Switzerland, France, the United States and Australia, the last of these Australia's first entry in more than 25 years.

The rules for this Cup bring some notable changes:

• Teams reuse existing AC75s, updated to the new rules, rather than building new boats.
• The power that the crew used to generate by hand or by pedaling now comes from batteries.
• Crews are smaller, and each must include at least one woman.
• Each crew must include a minimum number of sailors from the team's own country.

Preliminary regattas in 2026, in Cagliari, Sardinia, in May and in Naples in September, gave teams racing practice in the build-up. They did not count toward the Match.

How SailGP works

SailGP held its first season in 2019. It runs more like a motorsport championship: a fixed calendar, the same teams at every event, and points that build to a season winner.

The teams. Each team represents a country. In 2026 there were 13, including Australia, Britain, New Zealand, the United States, France, Spain, Denmark, Canada, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Brazil and Sweden.

The season. Events, each called a Sail Grand Prix, are held in cities around the world. The 2026 season began in Perth in January and finishes with the Grand Final in Abu Dhabi in late November.

An event weekend. Each event runs over two days. All the boats race together in a series of short fleet races, each lasting about 15 minutes, on courses set close to shore so crowds can watch. After the fleet races, the top three teams race once more in a final, and the winner of that race wins the event.

The championship. Teams earn points based on where they finish at each event. At the end of the season, the three highest-scoring teams race in the Grand Final, a single winner-takes-all race for the championship.

Because the boats are identical, a single poor start or turn can cost a team several places.

How to follow the racing

• Watch the start. In both events, the start often shapes the whole race.
• Use the graphics. Broadcasts show each boat's position, speed and gap to the leader.
• Expect weather delays. Races need wind within a set range. Too little and the boats can't foil, too much and racing becomes unsafe, so postponements are normal.
• Check how you can watch where you live. Both events stream on their official channels and apps in many countries, and local broadcasters vary.
• Know the other big events. The Sydney to Hobart race starts on December 26 each year. The Vendée Globe, a solo nonstop race around the world, runs every four years and last started in November 2024.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between the America's Cup and SailGP?

The America's Cup is an occasional challenge between yacht clubs that ends in a two-boat match series. SailGP is a yearly championship of national teams racing identical boats in a fleet.

When is the next America's Cup?

In Naples, Italy, in July 2027, with the first race of the Match scheduled for July 10. The challenger series is raced before it.

Who is defending the America's Cup?

Emirates Team New Zealand, representing the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron. It won the most recent Cup in Barcelona in 2024.

How does a team win the SailGP championship?

By finishing in the top three of the season standings to reach the Grand Final, then winning that one race.

Following sailing with Get Your Sports Here

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