Barometer check for SailGP

The Tip&Shaft publication talks to Julien Di Biase, SailGP’s chief operations officer, about the status of the league:

You have just announced the calendar for season 5. What are the prerequisites for hosting a Grand Prix?
The strategy is to go as far as possible to countries where we have teams. Then to find cities where we have good wind conditions but also where the topography lends itself to holding the event, so if possible in the heart of a city, with regattas close to the seaside. We also have cities who want to come back, so we’re trying to sign contracts for several years to establish a more stable calendar.

The idea would be to have the final in the same place every season and to visit the same towns to create a habit among the fans. What’s more, we’re gradually moving back to a calendar that follows the calendar year. For season 5, we’re taking advantage of the Olympic Games and the America’s Cup to start later, in November, finishing in November 2025, then we’ll have a season from January to November with a one-month break in December.

How much does an event cost?
It depends a bit on what you take into account, but if you don’t include TV production, we’re talking about between 3 and 4 million dollars (2.75 to 3.70 million euros) per event. Today, more than half of this is financed by the cities, whereas initially it was only SailGP that paid. We’ve also calculated that the return on investment for the cities is around 1 in 15, taking into account the economic impact and media value, so we have a really interesting product to offer. – Full report

Season 5 Schedule
2024
November 23-24 – Dubai, UAE

2025
January 18-19 – Auckland, New Zealand
February 8-9 – Sydney, Australia
March 15-16 – Los Angeles, USA
March 22-26 – San Francisco, USA
May 3-4 – Brazil *
June 7-8 – New York City, USA
July 19-20 – Great Britain *
August 16-17 – Germany *
September 6-7 – Taranto, Italy
September 20-21 – Geneva, Switzerland
October 4-5 – Andalucía – Cádiz, Spain
November 7-8 – Middle East *
November 29-30 – Grand Final – Abu Dhabi, UAE
* Venue to be announced

SailGP information – San Francisco details– YouTube – How to watch

Season 4 – 2023
June 16-17 – United States Sail Grand Prix | Chicago at Navy Pier
July 22-23 – United States Sail Grand Prix | Los Angeles
September 9-10 – France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez
September 23-24 – Italy Sail Grand Prix | Taranto
October 14-15 – Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía- Cádiz
December 9-10 – Dubai Sail Grand Prix | Dubai*

Season 4 – 2024
January 13-14 – Abu Dhabi Sail Grand Prix | Abu Dhabi
February 24-25 – Australia Sail Grand Prix | Sydney
March 23-24 – New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Auckland
March 23-24 – New Zealand Sail Grand Prix | Christchurch
May 4-5 – Bermuda Sail Grand Prix
June 1-2 – Canada Sail Grand Prix | Halifax
June 22-23 – United States Sail Grand Prix | New York
July 13-14 – SailGP Season 4 Grand Final | San Francisco
* Added October 3, 2023

Format for Season 4:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• Up to seven qualifying fleet races of approximately 15 minutes may be scheduled for each regatta.
• The top three teams from qualifying advance to a final race to be crowned event champion and earn the largest share of the $300,000.00 USD event prize money purse (increases to $400k for Abu Dhabi with the winning team now earning $200k at each event).
• The season ends with the Grand Final, which includes the Championship Final Race for the top three teams in the season standing with the winner claiming the $2 million USD prize.
• The top team on points ahead of the three-boat Championship Final will be awarded $350,000.00.

For competition documents, click here.

Established in 2018, SailGP seeks to be an annual, global sports league featuring fan-centric inshore racing among national teams in some of the iconic harbors around the globe.

Source: SailGP