The 37th America’s Cup is right around the corner and what an extravaganza it promises to be, as six teams vie for victory in one of the world’s longest-running and prestigious sporting events. And this year, leading up to the big event are seven weeks of thrilling racing action to satisfy the whims of every sailor.

The Cup originated in 1851 when the 100-foot schooner America triumphed in a British invitational regatta. The U.S. controlled the trophy for 132 years through 24 more challenges until Australia captured the Cup in 1983. Since then the title has volleyed between four nations, leading up to Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron’s win in 2021 and its defense of the Cup this year in Barcelona.

Hang on a minute: If New Zealand won, why is the Cup being held in Spain? As the holder of the Cup it had the right to choose the date, format and location of the next event. These four-time winners snubbed a bid to race in their home waters and turned to this picturesque, cosmopolitan Mediterranean seaport. Barcelona’s infrastructure, spectator-friendly waterfront and popularity as a destination is expected to “propel the growth trajectory of the event on the global sporting stage” according to organizers. And the “City of Counts” has responded with a cacophony of construction and groundwork that promises the most accessible America’s Cup event in history in a spectacular and vibrant setting.

Heading up the campaign to unseat Cup-holder Emirates Team New Zealand is Challenger of Record INEOS Brittannia, New York Yacht Club’s American Magic Team, Italy’s Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team, the French Orient Express Racing Team and the Swiss Alinghi Red Bull Racing. 

As early as August 22 the Preliminary Regatta will kick off the spectacle, giving Cup contenders a chance to check out the competition. All six teams will compete in four days of match racing that wraps up August 25.

Next on the schedule is the Louis Vuitton Cup Challenger Selection Series that begins August 29. But ETNZ won’t be sitting on the sidelines. In a departure from tradition, the Kiwis will participate in the double round robin series where each team races the other twice. The defenders bow out when the semifinals begin September 14, leaving the top four teams to duke it out. Two teams will advance to the finals to see which one will go on to face ETNZ in the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup in October.

A myriad of other exciting events overlap the Cup racing, promising lots of on-the-water action on the Balearic Sea. The America’s Cup J-Class Regatta October 7 to 11 will bring back the classic beauties who graced the AC course in the 1930s. Shamrock V, which was recently launched after a seven-year refit, Rainbow, Velsheda and Svea are scheduled to compete and will be berthed in the Race Village.

The UniCredit Youth America’s Cup and Puig Women’s America’s Cup will run from mid-September to mid-October, with the six Cup campaigns competing plus six additional teams representing Australia, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and Sweden.

The format for the Youth and Women’s regattas is the same. In each event the 12 teams racing the foiling AC40s will be divided into two fleets, each competing in eight qualification races before the top trio from each division advances to a semifinal series. Another four fleet races will winnow down the competition to just two finalists who will compete in a single thrilling winner-takes-all match. 

This is the third edition of the Youth America’s Cup, which runs from September 17 to 26.

“It’s a great opportunity for young sailors to get a taste of what the America’s Cup means—the technology, diversity of nations and multidisciplinary profiles you have in such a team,”said Matias Bühler, head coach for youth and women’s teams at Alinghi Red Bull Racing. “Five of our current Cup sailors have come up through the Youth Cup.”

This year marks the inaugural Women’s America’s Cup, which will be held October 5 to 13. Women have been involved in the Cup since the late 1800s and participation hit a high note in 1995 with the Mighty Mary IACC all-woman team. Nearly two decades later, foiling boats were established and the gender gap became a chasm.

“There are a lot of women in the teams, many in our team, in critical functions, but not necessarily in the sailboat,” Bühler said. “I think this can help increase the depth of sailing experience among women.”

He said the Olympics have strived to equal the balance of men’s and women’s events with success, and bridging that gap is a goal of the Cup organizers and campaigns as well.

The four-person teams will compete in identical AC40s, a scaled-down version of the AC75 but without the individual optimization options. Managed by the organizers as a one-design fleet, the sails, foils, controls and mechanisms are standardized. Racing aboard AC40s will focus the Youth and Women’s competition on skill, positioning and foiling technique, as they scream around the course at 30 to 45 knots.  

These events are based out of Barcelona’s Port Olímpic where spectators can watch the dock-out and return, check out the AC40s close up, mingle with competitors, and watch the starts and mark roundings from the breakwater.

“Barcelona will deliver great sailing conditions, and watching these beasts sailing here, before your eyes, will be a really big celebration of our sport,” Bühler said.

The excitement culminates with the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup October 12 to 27 when ETNZ battles to defend their title against the winner of the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series. The adversaries will compete in two races per day, with the first team to reach seven points claiming victory. The schedule allows for the series to run a full 13 matches, and for deferment days if the wind is outside the 6.5- to 21-knot limit.

The matches are raced in a second-generation AC75, which is lighter than the 2021 version, with larger foils for quicker lift and faster speeds that top 50 knots. Sailed by a crew of eight, the boats are roughly 75 feet long and 16 feet wide, with 87-foot masts. Built under a box rule, the newly launched boats illustrate diverse approaches within the same rule, Bühler said. 

“A major part of winning the Cup is designing and building a faster boat,” and to that end varying hull shapes, use of chines, bow and stern bustle treatments are evident. 

However it’s not just the design and structure. The latest AC75s feature complicated electrical, computerization and programming components. 

“The America’s Cup has always represented the leading edge of the sport, the boats, sails, and mast construction, but these things are extremely complicated racing machines,” said Tim Hacket, Alinghi Red Bull Racing’s shore manager. 

Hacket has been involved in the America’s Cup since 1992 and has watched the boats and the event morph. 

“It blows me away when doing in-water checks, it often involves four guys sitting down there with their laptops, plugged into the boat, changing function codes,” he said.

Racing will be broadcast on YouTube and Facebook but the best place to watch of course will be right in Barcelona, where multiple venues offer free viewing. The official Race Village is located at Barcelona’s Moll de la Fusta, the promenade along the harbor front at the Port Vell, and the epicenter of the America’s Cup action. Campaign bases are located throughout the old port where boats can be seen docking in and out. The main stage will host pre- and post-race presentations and racing will be live-streamed on jumbo screens with commentary, entertainment and vendors. 

Watch in-person from the beaches at St. Miguel, Barceloneta and Somorrostro, plus Fanzones at Bogatell Beach and Plaça del Mar where screens and commentary will also be available. Access to the Fanzones and Race Village is free but may become restricted to avoid overcrowding.

For information on all things America’s Cup, including the adjunct events, visit www.americascup.com. To follow American Magic, visit www.americanmagic.americascup.com. 

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