37th America’s Cup was amazingly boring

Since the first America’s Cup in 1870, interest in the competition has been high. But it was for the 34th edition in 2013 when the revised format – faster boats, course boundaries, and broadcast enhancements – turned the challenge event into an entertainment program.

The goal was to attract the larger non-sailing audience to improve commercial support, but the downside is promoted entertainment needs to be … entertaining. While racers want to start ahead and stay ahead, viewers need a reason to watch the finish.

WindCheck magazine publisher Ben Cesare has past experience in making the sport fun to watch, and he was underwhelmed with what he watched in Barcelona. Here’s his report:

Amazing? Sure. The professionalism of the teams, the astounding level of thought, effort and yes, the money spent, that was put into the boats and everything surrounding them, from the branding to the crew equipment to the support craft, to the base camps were truly impressive. The modern era, post-12 Metre, has seen the professionalism curve go continuously upward.

But this edition, with its add-ons like a Women’s and Junior America’s Cup, sailed in one-design foiling monohulls, was truly a big step forward. It was a quantum leap toward that goal of emulating or even surpassing the levels of Formula 1 auto racing in terms of technology, style and frankly, largesse. – Full report