{"id":157802,"date":"2025-05-09T06:20:20","date_gmt":"2025-05-09T05:20:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/?p=157802"},"modified":"2025-05-28T09:50:49","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T08:50:49","slug":"where-will-the-next-americas-cup-be-held-not-auckland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/americas-cup\/where-will-the-next-americas-cup-be-held-not-auckland-157802","title":{"rendered":"Where will the next America’s Cup be held? Not Auckland"},"content":"Sir Jim Ratcliffe\u2019s INEOS Britannia will not compete in the next America\u2019s Cup<\/a>.\r\n\r\nThe release issued last night stated: \u201cINEOS Britannia<\/a> announces that it has withdrawn its intention to challenge for the next America\u2019s Cup.\r\n\r\n\u201cThe decision has been taken after a protracted negotiation with Athena Racing Ltd following the conclusion of 37th\u00a0America\u2019s Cup in Barcelona.\u201d\r\n\r\nThis follows the dramatic split<\/a> between team boss and skipper Sir Ben Ainslie<\/a>, and twice Cup title sponsors INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe in January. INEOS Britannia became the first British team<\/a> to reach a Cup final in 60 years, but lost 7-2<\/a> to Emirates Team New Zealand<\/a> in Barcelona last October.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_154636\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"630\"]\"\" INEOS Britannia and Emirares Team New Zealand race in the Louis Vuitton Round Robin Series in 2024. Photo: Ricardo Pinto \/ America's Cup[\/caption]\r\n\r\nThe release went on to place the blame with Ainslie\u2019s team for the fact that INEOS would not be competing in the 38th America\u2019s Cup:\r\n\r\n\u201cThe agreement that had been reached with Athena would have allowed both parties to compete in the next Cup, but it depended on a rapid resolution. INEOS Britannia had agreed the substantive terms very quickly, but Athena failed to bring the agreement to a timely conclusion. INEOS Britannia is of the opinion that this six-month delay has undermined its ability to prepare for the next Cup and so has reluctantly withdrawn its challenge.\u201d\r\n\r\nSir Jim Ratcliffe, Chairman of INEOS, commented, \u201cThis was a very difficult decision to have taken following our challenge at the last two America\u2019s Cups.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe were the most successful British challenger in modern times with an exceptionally quick boat and we felt with the very effective input from the Mercedes F1<\/a> engineers that we had a real chance to win at the next Cup. Unfortunately, the opportunity has slipped away.\u201d\r\n\r\nThis is a major reversal since INEOS\u2019s first communication in January, which stated that the team \u201calready have 100 scientists and engineers working on the design of our AC38 yacht\u201d and had appointed Dave Endean as CEO.\r\n\r\nAs recently as early March, Sir Jim Ratcliffe told the BBC<\/a> - in a long-form interview that addressed the many tribulations of his sporting investments \u2013 that: \u201cWe will be at the next America's Cup and I think we will be there with a very quick boat.\u201d\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_154949\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"630\"]\"\" Grant Dalton congratulates INEOS Britannia backer Sir Jim Ratcliffe on winning the Louis Vuitton Cup Final. Photo: Ian Roman \/ America's Cup[\/caption]\r\n

Ainslie's Athena Challenger of Record<\/h2>\r\nAinslie\u2019s side has remained tight-lipped on the subject, after an initial release stating that they were \u201castounded\u201d by INEOS\u2019s announcement in January.\r\n\r\nThe Challenger of Record<\/a> remains the Royal Yacht Squadron, Cowes, UK. Shortly after the split, Ainslie quietly laid down a line in the sand with the team, now known as Athena Racing, describing itself as \u2018the British Challenger for the 38th America's Cup\u2019 on the Athena team website<\/a>.\r\n\r\nThis fact was equally discreetly confirmed by the Royal Yacht Squadron<\/a> on its own website, with an update in February that: \"Athena Racing represents Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd,\u00a0the British entry for the 38th America\u2019s Cup lead [sic] by Sir Ben Ainslie.\r\n\r\nIt went on to add: \u201cRoyal Yacht Squadron\u00a0Ltd\u00a0is honoured to be the Challenging Club for the British Challenger of Record Athena Racing for the 38th America\u2019s Cup. We will work alongside The Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron to deliver the protocol for the oldest trophy in modern sport.\u201d\r\n\r\nSo far, so British.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_154771\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"630\"]\"\" Sir Ben Ainslie was skipper and team boss for INEOS Britannia in the 37th America's Cup but has since split from the title sponsors. Photo: Ian Roman \/ America's Cup[\/caption]\r\n

Ainslie's funding challenge<\/h2>\r\nBut the big question British supporters have been asking since the very public break up is: can Sir Ben get the funding he needs to build a competitive entry?\r\n\r\nThere are many with deep loyalties to Ainslie in the sailing world - from his early Olympic successes Ainslie was the figurehead of a wave of British Sailing Team successes that in turn attracted world-class funding and personnel, developing Team GBR into a \u2018medal factory\u2019 that was the envy of almost every sailing nation.\r\n\r\nHis successive Olympic victories, America\u2019s Cup challenges, and most lately SailGP team ownership, have brought yet more sponsorship funding and employment opportunities for those good enough and lucky enough to join his squads. Off the water, many have also worked with him for decades - including his CMO Jo Grindley and others on the commercial side who, of course, got a British America\u2019s Cup team to Bermuda long before the INEOS partnership .\r\n\r\nAinslie is also, as anyone who\u2019s even remotely followed sailing will know, not a man to be underestimated, particularly when backed into a corner.<\/a>\r\n\r\nOne good indication of the team feeling came after Ainslie\u2019s Emirates Team Great Britain won the Sydney Sail GP<\/a>, with plenty of posts on social media from key players praising Ainslie\u2019s leadership.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_157004\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"630\"]\"\" Ainslie's Emirates Great Britain team won the Sydney Sail GP event. Photo: Ricardo Pinto for SailGP[\/caption]\r\n\r\nOf course, loyalty alone won\u2019t pay the very substantial bills for an America\u2019s Cup team, but both new backers and some of the original team founders were being courted in Barcelona.\r\n\r\nInterestingly, the British SailGP F50 now carries branding for both JPMorgan<\/a> and Howdens<\/a>. JPMorgan has been associated with Ainslie since his Olympic campaigns, while Howdens insurance has now added sailing to a sporting portfolio that includes rugby (British and Irish Lions) and horse racing (Ascot Racecourse and the Bahrain Turf Club, among others).\r\n

Where next for America's Cup?<\/h2>\r\nAnother challenge for Ainslie \u2013 or any other team looking to secure additional financial backing right now \u2013 is the uncertainty about where the next Cup<\/a> might be.\r\n\r\nIt won\u2019t be in Auckland, that much we know. It wasn\u2019t an April\u2019s fool, but Emirates Team New Zealand\u2019s announcement<\/a>\u00a0- dropping into inboxes in the northern hemisphere just hours before April 1, certainly had plenty of us checking the date.\r\n\r\nThe statement read: \u201cIt would take a combination of private backing, local government as well as central government support to make it happen, but not at the expense of funding other priorities in the tough economic climate.\r\n\r\n\u201cIn this time, the team have had comfort in the level of private support and have been working with T\u0101taki Auckland Unlimited who have been proactively spearheading the bid. So, it is with both disappointment and understanding to hear MBIE and central government have decided not to back the 38th America\u2019s Cup in Auckland in 2027.\r\n\r\n\u201cWhile the significant economic benefits of hosting the America\u2019s Cup and other major events are well proven, such as \u20ac1.034b (NZ$1.9b) of economic benefits in Barcelona in 2024, we understand there are other priorities for the New Zealand government right now.\u201d\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_129622\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"630\"]\"\" Auckland hosted a spectacular 36th America's Cup - despite Covid restrictions - in 2020\/21. Photo: ACEA[\/caption]\r\n

Other European options?<\/h2>\r\nAnd so far, when it comes to the 38th America\u2019s Cup venue, that\u2019s all we\u2019ve got.\r\n\r\nInterestingly, at a few events recently both former team sailors and sponsors have quietly asked me 'What do you know?' And while I'm sure some of that is trying to figure out where any leaks are springing from, there's also a genuine sense that no real information is forthcoming, so pretty much everything else is speculation.\r\n\r\nLast year\u2019s host city of Barcelona is known to not want to re-host. A play from Valencia, hosts of the hugely successful 32nd Cup in Spain in 2007, and the 2010 Deed of Gift Match, went understandably quiet after devastating floods hit the region.\r\n\r\nThe rumour mill is currently in overdrive suggesting alternative European venues. Naples is reported to be a forerunner, which would reward the longest standing entrants in the modern day Cup, with Italian syndicate Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli. Although it would be unusual, to say the least, for a defeated Challenger to have the Cup held in their home country despite not having won it - and therefore not be hosting it.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_3656\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"599\"]\"Naples Naples hosted a dramatic America's Cup World Series event in 2012.[\/caption]\r\n\r\nItaly would no doubt appeal to the luxury brands associated with the Cup - Prada from Luna Rossa, event partners Louis Vuitton, 37th Women\u2019s America\u2019s Cup<\/a> partners Puig. And remaining in a European time zone would presumably help with negotiations when it comes to all-important TV rights. (Though to really build continuity of audience from Barcelona, what the Cup needs is some racing soon, which is looking increasingly unlikely\u2026)\r\n\r\nNew Zealand news outlet Stuff<\/a> \u2013 who always have their ears to the ground on the Cup, even if it\u2019s hard to know who to listen to \u2013 are reporting that Greek shipping tycoon George Prokopiou is behind a bid for the country to host, with Athens a forerunner. It would be a spectacular venue for sure, but Greece has never entered the America\u2019s Cup - it has no fan base nor physical base.\r\n\r\nAnd though there is much less chatter about Jeddah<\/a> or Abu Dhabi these days, the option of the event going to the Middle East - with all the financial and political ramifications that brings - still looms over the Cup.\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_154937\" align=\"alignnone\" width=\"630\"]\"\" Where next for the 38th America\u2019s Cup?[\/caption]\r\n

Lost momentum?<\/h2>\r\nFor fans, it\u2019s hard not to feel disappointment that the momentum of the 37th America\u2019s Cup has faded - for British fans in particular, it\u2019s a bitter disappointment that the opportunity to build on the best Cup result in 60 years has been lost.\r\n\r\nThere has long been sufficient depth of talent at the very top end of British sailing to support more than one Cup bid - between Ainslie, Dylan Fletcher<\/a>, Giles Scott<\/a>, Paul Goodison<\/a>, Hannah Mills<\/a> and others \u2013 but funding one viable and competitive team is yet again going to be the biggest challenge.","excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kiwis are hacked off. Even enthusiasts of the America\u2019s Cup have strong opinions on whether the country should be spending large sums of money on hosting a sport for some of the wealthiest people in the world. It\u2019s a fair point, so some are pleased the country isn\u2019t going to host the 38th America\u2019s Cup. Having just spent a month in Auckland it\u2019s clear to me that using taxpayers money to help run a Cup project is a contentious topic. Businesses are being hit hard, the cost of living is going up and there are big financial pressures on a government that knows it has some serious domestic issues to tackle. It\u2019s no different to many other countries where there\u2019s real apprehension about where the world is heading. Yet, the thing that really riles many Kiwis is the fact they feel they\u2019ve been denied the opportunity to reap the rewards of a phenomenal and long-term sporting success. Theirs is a track record which makes them the most successful America\u2019s Cup team in the modern age and the second most successful country ever. New Zealand has won the Cup five times, yet only hosted it three times \u2013 and only twice have they been able to enjoy the commercial benefits (the global pandemic pulled the rug from under their feet in 2020\/21, which was seriously bad luck). \u2018What more do we have to do?\u2019 they ask. Article continues below… The week in which the news broke that Auckland would not be hosting the next Cup was a busy one. Ahead of that bombshell came the announcement that the city would be a stopover in the 2027 Ocean Race. This is big for both the event and for the city. If there\u2019s one other area of the sport in which New Zealand has left a huge mark, it\u2019s in this round the world race. A second announcement days later confirmed a new Kiwi Ocean Race team led by indefatigable Vend\u00e9e Globe skipper Conrad Colman. The Kiwi legacy in the Whitbread\/Volvo\/Ocean Race harks back to the dominant success of Steinlager 2 in 1989\/90. I was able to join Colman aboard the mighty red Maxi, sailing Steinlager up the coast to meet a group of 25 teenagers (most of them non-sailors), who were on a 21-day outward bound-style course. They\u2019d hiked for several days to get to a beach, from where they swam out to the anchored boat before spending five days offshore. An incredible adventure for them \u2013 and seeing one of the most famous boats in the history of ocean racing being used for this while maintaining the spirit and layout of an ocean racer was a great illustration to me of what legacy is all about. Bringing The Ocean Race back to a city that has hosted a stopover 10 times in almost 50 years will be a boost for sure, and having a local team to support will help too. Following on from the sold-out SailGP event earlier this year …Continue reading »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":463,"featured_media":157803,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[687],"tags":[569,1633],"review_manufacturer":[],"acf":[],"introduction":null,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157802"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/463"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=157802"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157802\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":157805,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157802\/revisions\/157805"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=157802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157802"},{"taxonomy":"review_manufacturer","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.yachtingworld.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/review_manufacturer?post=157802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}