Broadening sport’s appeal with fashion

American fashion Thomas Hilfiger has partnered with United States SailGP Team, and the crew is now seen strutting their new fashion on social media. Mike Buckley, a two-time world champion sailor and U.S. SailGP Team CEO & Co-Owner, isn’t afraid of taking big swings.

“I pursued the partnership relentlessly,” Buckley admits. “But when I finally sat down with Tommy [Hilfiger], I said, ‘Help me change the sport’.” That simple yet audacious pitch worked. Now, the partnership is bearing fruit in the form of a custom livery and an upcoming capsule collection, the latter of which Buckley is particularly excited about.

Buckley sees partnerships like this as crucial to elevating sailing from niche sport to mainstream spectacle. “When you have a partner that’s always dreaming, the sky’s the limit,” he says of working with Hilfiger. He hopes these collaborations can inject sailing with a much-needed “cool factor,” attracting not just fans but also influencers and cultural icons who can help broaden the sport’s appeal. – Full report

SailGP information – Los Angeles details – YouTube – Facebook

Season 5 Leaderboard (after 3 of 14 events)
1. Great Britain, 27 points
2. Australia, 24 points
3. Spain, 20 points
4. New Zealand, 20 points
5. Denmark, 17 points
6. Canada, 15 points
7. France, 15 points*
8. Switzerland, 12 points
9. Italy, 7 points
10. Brazil, 0 point**
11. United States, 0 points**
12. Germany, -6 points**
* France was awarded points for the first two events as their F50 was not available
**Teams are awarded season penalty points for incidents during practice or racing

Season 5 Schedule – 14 events
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 22-23 – San Francisco, USA
May 3-4 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
June 7-8 – New York City, USA
July 19-20 – Portsmouth, Great Britain
August 16-17 – Sassnitz, 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

Format for Season 5:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• Five 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 prize purse (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had $400,000.00 USD prize purse with winning team 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 a monetary award (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had $2 million USD prize).
• The top team on points ahead of the three-boat Championship Final will get a monetary award (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had a $350,000.00 prize).
• Ten of the 12 teams are privately owned, with the league having ownership of New Zealand and Spain.
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.