America’s Cup: New Venue, Expanded Schedule Announced

(December 22, 2015) – France will host the fifth Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series event of 2016 in September when racing comes to the Mediterranean city of Toulon on September 10-11, 2016.

“Toulon will be the third European city to host the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series, and is the only stop on the Mediterranean,” confirmed Harvey Schiller, the Commercial Commissioner of the America’s Cup. “We are expecting a passionate reception for Franck Cammas and Groupama Team France, and indeed all the competitors, as the series builds towards the 2017 America’s Cup racing in Bermuda.”

“It is tremendous to have a chance to demonstrate to French fans what this new America’s Cup racing is all about,” said Franck Cammas, the skipper of Groupama Team France. “French sailors and fans are passionate about multihulls and speed, and it is only recently, with the shift to foiling catamarans, that the America’s Cup has reflected this excitement. We can’t wait to bring the racing to Toulon and to compete in front of a home crowd.”

Hubert Falco, the Mayor of Toulon and president of ‘Toulon Provence Méditerranée’ said: “The Greater Toulon council is very proud to host the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series. This will give global exposure to our port and harbor, which is among the most beautiful in Europe as well as allowing us to demonstrate our ability to organize and accommodate such an important event.”

“It is going to be fantastic to hold one of the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series events here in France,” said Bruno Dubois, the general manager of Groupama Team France. “We will be able to share with the public, our partners and the media a new dimension of our project. This follows the excitement generated earlier this month at the Paris Boat Show where our AC45 boat was on display. Now everyone can come and see it in action, flying over the bay of Toulon.”

Following the announcement of the France event, two additional events are expected to complete the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series. One will be in Asia in November 2016, and all six competitors have now unanimously agreed to add an additional Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series regatta in the first quarter of 2017.

ACWS 2016-17 – Seven events expected
February 27-28: Muscat, Oman
May 7-8: New York, USA
June 11-12: Chicago, USA
July 23-24: Portsmouth, UK
September 10-11: Toulon, France
November: Asia
TBA

Three events have already been completed:

ACWS 2015
July 25-26: Portsmouth, UK
August 29-30: Gothenberg, Sweden
October 17-18: Bermuda

Current Standings
1. Emirates Team New Zealand; skipper Glenn Ashby / helmsman Peter Burling – 122 points
2. ORACLE TEAM USA; skipper/helmsman Jimmy Spithill – 112 points
3. Land Rover BAR; skipper/helmsman Ben Ainslie – 109 points
4. Artemis Racing; skipper/helmsman Nathan Outteridge – 105 points
5. SoftBank Team Japan; skipper/helmsman Dean Barker – 100 points
6. Groupama Team France; skipper/helmsman Franck Cammas – 82 points

Fleet racing in the foiling, wing-sailed 45ft catamarans, the America’s Cup World Series winner will be the team with the most points, counting every point that they have received from each of the different rounds of the 2015-17 series.

In 2017, the six teams (5 challengers and 1 defender) will compete in the new 15-meter AC Class Yacht, beginning in May with the America’s Cup Qualifiers, a double round robin match racing series. In this series, the winner of the America’s Cup World Series starts the America’s Cup Qualifiers with a 2 point advantage (runner-up in ACWS begins with 1 point advantage).

At the conclusion of the America’s Cup Qualifiers, only the four challengers with the most points (each match win earns 1 point) advance to the Challenger Playoffs in June to determine the challenger who will face the defender in the 35th America’s Cup. Details.

Source: ACEA