Sometimes it’s hard to wrap your head around all that’s evolved since 1851, when a syndicate of owners from the the newly minted New York Yacht Club brought their schooner America to the UK for a summer of racing and returned with the trophy that would become the America’s Cup.

It helps to remember that no matter the era, the Cup has always been as much a contest of cutting-edge yacht design as it is of high-level sailing skills. Seen through that lens, the foiling monohulls that are racing in this year’s 37th America’s Cup, likely exceeding 50 knots and resembling fighter jets more than sailing yachts, make sense.

It also helps to look back. When the Americans returned with their new prize, a syndicate member authored the Deed of Gift to create an international trophy to be contested between two yacht clubs—defender and challenger. Vast fortunes were often wagered to contest and defend a trophy that the original winners are rumored to have considered melting down into medals, and over time, the Cup’s mythos far exceeded any rational worth.

But this irrationality became an important part of the Cup’s gravity, and the contest’s winner-takes-all ethic galvanized. Sir Thomas Lipton, for example, challenged five times, spending staggering sums, but ultimately sailed home empty-handed.

The NYYC successfully defended the Cup for 113 years, making their stewardship the longest continuous winning streak in sports history. Then, the unthinkable: On September 26, 1983, with the best-of-seven series tied at 3-3, skipper John Bertrand and Australia II crossed the finish line 41 seconds ahead of skipper Dennis Conner and his Liberty crew.

The Auld Mug travelled Down Under, commencing a wild multi-national ride that has seen the Cup change hands five times, including two court-ordered matches (1988, 2010), ample controversy, secrecy, puffery and chest-thumping, plus the greatest comeback in sports history (2013).

And, in 2021, the Cup offered the world a glimpse of some much-needed normality, when, amid the still-pre-vaccine pandemic’s darkest days, broadcasts from New Zealand showed unmasked crowds gathered to enjoy one of the world’s only sporting events.

The Cup has long been an extravagant stage populated by larger-than-life personalities—including Conner, Ted Turner, Alan Bond and J.P. Morgan—but it’s also been a crucible of cutting-edge yacht design. Take, for example, the 201-foot Reliance that Nathanael G. Herreshoff created for the 1903 Cup, the gorgeous J Class yachts of the 1930s, or the winged keel that the Aussies kept hidden behind Australia II’s skirt during the summer of 1983.

But it wasn’t until a photo emerged in August 2012 from New Zealand of a catamaran flying on hydrofoils that the Cup entered its current ultra-high-performance epoch.

Emirates Team New Zealand (ETNZ) defeated Oracle Team USA 7-1 in 2017 on Bermuda’s Great Sound and—as Defender—co-authored the AC75 class rule in 2018. After successfully defending again on home waters in 2021, they elected to mount their defense off Barcelona, Spain, this fall, using second-generation AC75s.

Here’s a look at the teams and technology that will contest AC37, plus an overview of two newcomers to the stage, the Puig Women’s America’s Cup and the Unicredit Youth America’s Cup.

Evolution, Not Revolution

Second-generation AC75s are lighter, quicker-to-foil, and faster than their monohulls-in-name-only forebears.

In 2018, the Defender and the Challenger of Record of the 36th America’s Cup published the class rule for a wild-looking foiling monohull that would contest the 2021 Cup. AC75s fly above the brine via ballasted hydrofoils that attach to the fuselage-like hull—port and starboard—via hydraulically controlled foil arms. While some AC75 componentry was event-supplied, hulls, foils, and sails were open to interpretation within the box-rule design.

Teams pursued different design tracks, however two things became clear: AC75s needed to be optimized for take-offs, and the Defender had built the fastest gun.

AC75s are back for the 37th America’s Cup, albeit with some important changes.

“Version two boats are approximately 1,985 pounds lighter than version one [boats] in sailing trim,” says Andres Suar, a naval architect at the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team. 

While version one AC75s were crewed by 11 sailors, version two boats will race with eight-person crews. This accounts for about 880 pounds, while each set of version two foils weighs (ballpark) 440 pounds less than their predecessors. Code zero sails, which weigh about 200 pounds, are gone, allowing for lighter bowsprits; likewise, running backstays aren’t required, saving structural weight.

The final shavings are up to each team. “This could be related to structures optimization or systems reduction,” Suar explains. “As with any foiling boat, the biggest focus is to make the foils and control systems work properly.”

Of the version two changes, the reduction in crewmembers triggered some of the biggest evolutions. Since AC75 crews must manually pressurize the boat’s hydraulic systems, the four dedicated “power-team” sailors will be on stationary bikes. “The inclusion of cyclors is a consequence of the crew reduction and not the other way around,” Suar says.

Luna Rossa lost the 2021 Cup, but their clever use of port and starboard drivers rewrote playbooks. Suar explains that the version two rule requires teams to specify the location of crew workstations, a change that likely means most crewmembers will remain in-situ, with off-sides sailors contributing to the war effort. 

The resulting second-generation AC75s will be knots faster in all winds, Suar says, however the biggest differences will be in lighter airs. Where version one boats wallowed, version two boats, which carry larger-span foils, will fly. Add wind, and boatspeeds can exceed 50 knots.

While AC75 foil design has always been critical, the stakes have spiked as teams learn more about optimizing these speed machines.

“Visually, a small geometrical variation in the foil will have a bigger impact than a big geometrical variation in the hull,” Suar says. He notes that teams can only build three foils (one-and-a-half sets), and that they must select their chosen foils ahead of racing. This places emphasis on correctly anticipating conditions, and on designing foils with wide sweet spots.

“The extremes are always difficult,” Suar says, explaining that foils that are optimized for less than 8 knots true windspeed or more than 18 knots will yield specialized shapes that aren’t fast across other conditions. “It’s also hard to design foils for waves in any windspeed range.”

While foil shapes remain the most important consideration, all teams are interrogating other possible gains.

“The hull is always an area of development,” Suar says, noting that teams can only build one version two hull. “Aerodynamic drag reduction and hull-to-sails interaction will be more important than before.” One consequence of these aerodynamics is that sailors will be sequestered in their pit-like workstations, making it hard to witness crew choreography. But, given that the Cup has always been a zero-sum game, Suar and other designers will be hunting down all rules-compliant efficiencies, irrespective of aesthetics or spectator quibbles.

The Teams

The Defenders

Emirates Team New Zealand’s (ETNZ).

Its roots date back to the 1987 Cup, when Michael Fay and David Richwhite financed the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s first (unsuccessful) challenge. Fay and Richwhite supported two more attempts (1988, 1992), but for the 1995 Cup, Sir Peter Blake became team boss, with Olympic Gold medalist Russell Coutts skippering. The team, racing for the RNZYS, sailed brilliantly, and—after winning the Louis Vuitton Cup challenger-selection series—delivered American skipper Dennis Conner’s second Cup defeat. 

The Cup went to Auckland, where TNZ staged a successful defense (2000). Then, a nightmare: Coutts and others defected teams (2000), Blake was murdered (2001), and TNZ lost the 2003 Cup 5-0 to Alinghi. The now-Emirates-sponsored team—led by offshore-sailing legend Grant Dalton—rebounded to win the 2007 LVC but lost the final Cup race to Alinghi by one second. ETNZ was the first team to hydrofoil ahead of the 2013 Cup, which they lost to the Americans. The Kiwis returned the favor in 2017, and the Cup returned to Auckland, where ETNZ defended it (2021). 

The Challengers

Alinghi Red Bull Racing

Switzerland isn’t a sailing Mecca, but this didn’t stop Ernesto Bertarelli from making Cup history. Bertarelli’s Alinghi sailing team (est. 1994)—representing the Société Nautique de Genève—challenged for the 2003 Cup and began headhunting sailors. While this made Bertarelli persona non grata in Auckland, Alinghi became the first start-up to win the Cup (2003) and successfully defend it (2007). 

Legal devilry and a court-ordered Cup match (2010) with BMW Oracle Racing followed. The Americans won, and Alinghi exited the scene. In 2021, Bertarelli announced that “Alinghi Red Bull Racing”— representing the SNG—was challenging for the Cup. The team is a start-up (again), but Bertarelli is a two-time Cup-winning boss (and sailor), and Red Bull’s F1 design pedigree is world-renowned. 

INEOS Britannia

In 1851, the Royal Yacht Squadron lost the £100 Cup to the New York Yacht Club, and the wounds haven’t healed, despite many attempts to reclaim what became the America’s Cup. After winning his fifth Olympic medal, Sir Ben Ainslie dedicated himself to reclaiming the Cup. His Land Rover BAR team challenged for the 2017 Cup but were eliminated from the LVC. Ainslie joined forces with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, founder of INEOS, to form INEOS Team UK ahead of the 2021 Cup, but the team lost the challenger series. Now, INEOS Britannia—representing the RYS—is the Challenger of Record (read: first club to challenge). The team has forged a design partnership with the Mercedes-AMG F1 Applied Science group. Underdogs, they are not. 

Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team

In 1997, Patrizio Bertelli, then co-CEO of the Prada Group, was meeting with yacht designer German Frers when the idea of challenging for the 2000 Cup was lofted. Prada Challenge was launched. The team won the LVC, but the Defender—ETNZ—prevailed. 

The team challenged in 2003 but were eliminated in the LVC. They returned in 2007, this time as Luna Rossa Challenge and progressed to the LVC Finals but lost to ETNZ. Luna Rossa Challenge, representing the Circolo della Vela Sicilia, contested the 2013 Cup but lost the LVC. They returned in 2021 as Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli, flying CVS colors, and won the challenger’s cup, but ETNZ defended the Cup. Look for cutting-edge design from this battle-hardened team.

NYYC American Magic

While the New York Yacht Club’s involvement with the America’s Cup dates to 1851, the Auld Mug last resided in Manhattan in 1983. The NYYC challenged three times (1987, 2000, 2003) before team principals Hap Fauth and Doug DeVos founded NYYC American Magic (2018) and named Terry Hutchinson, a multiple-time world-champion sailor and Cup veteran, as skipper and president of sailing operations. 

NYYC American Magic challenged for the 2021 Cup, but Patriot suffered a boat-breaking capsize in the challenger’s series; despite resuscitating Patriot, they were the first challenger to be eliminated. The team regrouped and resumed their challenge for the 2024 Cup, this time with Olympic gold medalists Paul Goodison and Tom Slingsby driving. Expect a formidable showing from this well-resourced team.

Orient Express Racing Team

The story of the French-flagged challenger begins with Ortwin Kandler and his son, Stephane. Ortwin, an Airbus executive, was long interested in high-performance sailing, while Stephane founded K-Challenge in 2001 as a technology incubator for high-level events, including the America’s Cup. The two mounted the Areva Challenge campaign for the 2007 Cup, and the team finished the LVC in eighth place. The courtroom kerfuffle surrounding the 2010 Cup sidelined the French. Following the 2021 Cup, Stephane partnered with Bruno Dubois, who has led numerous professional sailing teams. Together, they launched Orient Express Racing Team, which will fly the Société Nautique de Saint-Tropez’s burgee. While the team has acquired solid sponsors, they’re purportedly operating with about half the resources of their rivals.

Not Your Father’s Auld Mug

The Puig Women’s America’s Cup and the Unicredit Youth America’s Cup aim to upskill the next generation of foiling sailors.

The America’s Cup has been contested 36 times, but—since 1937—only one woman has crewed in multiple Cup-cycle races with a winning team. Dawn Riley—arguably sailing’s most important glass-ceiling smasher and a world-class sailor—served as pit crew aboard America3 when they won the 1992 Defender selection series. America3 won that year’s America’s Cup, but Riley wasn’t aboard for the actual Cup match.

Flash forward 32 years, and event organizers are taking steps to foster inclusivity with the creation of the Puig Women’s America’s Cup, which will be contested aboard AC40 foiling monohulls.

The racing will be highly competitive, but, more importantly, it’s expected that the event and the preceding training will help train many top female sailors in the foiling skills needed so that the next America’s Cup will be less male-dominated.

Unlike AC75s that require their eight-person crews to manually pressurize the vessel’s hydraulics, the One Design AC40s, which were developed this Cup cycle, are sailed by four-person crews and leverage batteries, not brawn. AC40 controls are push-button operated, and the boats feature an automated flight-control system. Sailors remain in in-situ crew positions throughout maneuvers, with the dedicated port and starboard drivers occupying the forward seats; windward trimmers adjust the mainsail, while the leeward trimmers handle the jib.

AC40s are pushing 50 knots, with strategy and tactics being the most important racecourse currencies.

The Defender and all five challengers are fielding teams who will represent their respective yacht clubs in the Puig Women’s America’s Cup. Six additional teams—flying Australian, Canadian, Dutch, German, Spanish, and Swedish flags—have been invited to race. Teams will be split into two pools, with the Cup-associated teams in one bracket and the non-Cup teams on the other.

Racing starts with the Qualification Series
(October 5-9), which will consist of six to nine 12-boat fleet races that will determine the three quickest teams from each pool. These six teams will advance to the Final Series (October 11), which will feature three or four fleet races.

From there, the two fastest teams advance to the Final Races (October 13), which will be determined by a single match race.

The level of talent involved in the event is staggering. Without getting too granular, some high-profile names include three-time Olympic medalist Hannah Mills (two golds, one silver), who is sailing for INEOS Britannia; two-time Olympic medalist (gold and silver) Jo Aleh, who is sailing for ETNZ, and two-time SailGP champion (and Olympic silver medalist) Nina Curtis, who is racing with the invited Team Australia Challenge.

American interests will be represented by current and former (respectively) Olympians Erika Reinke and Helena Scutt, The Ocean Race winner Francesca Clapcich, plus One Design veterans Sara Stone and Louisa Nordstrom. While these high-level sailors—plus many others—can call tactics as well as the boys, the Puig Women’s America’s Cup is the first time in the Cup’s 173-year history that women are being given the opportunity to perform on a world-class stage aboard ultra-high-performance raceboats.

Additionally, event organizers created the Unicredit Youth America’s Cup (September 17-26), which will be contested aboard AC40s using the same 12-team format as the Puig Women’s America’s Cup. Here, the goal is to build a talent pipeline.

While these events aim to lay the groundwork to ensure a more inclusive tomorrow, one of the most encouraging developments this Cup cycle is that some female athletes have been selected to race aboard both their team’s youth and women’s boats. Given that luck represents the confluence of opportunity and preparation, the 37th America’s Cup should hopefully be the last time that women sailors aren’t involved in actual Cup racing. 

This article was originally published in the August 2024 issue.