Game Time for America’s Cup Teams

Perfect weather for racing and spectating alike lies ahead for the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series Toulon in France this weekend on September 9 to 11.

Toulon is the host of the penultimate round of the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series before attention turns to the last event in Fukuoka, Japan, and then the America’s Cup itself in Bermuda beginning with the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup Qualifiers in March 2017.

The stakes could not be higher as Land Rover BAR have a slender one point lead over the pack, and winning the Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series gives the victorious team a two point headstart next summer in Bermuda in the double round-robin Louis Vuitton America’s Cup Qualifiers.

Two points is a significant advantage in 2017 so all six teams will be fighting harder than ever for valuable points in France, and then again at the last event in Japan in November.

The pressure is on every team each time they race, but in Toulon that is especially true for the home team Groupama Team France. Franck Cammas and his crew know the waters around Toulon well, but with competition so close between all six teams, the French are going to have to have an error free weekend to have a chance of outright victory.

The weather forecasts are excellent with sunshine on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and building sea breeze winds in the afternoon all weekend. Practice racing on Friday begins at 14:00 with racing on Saturday and Sunday beginning at 14:30.

How to watch: Broadcast – Time converter

Event details – Scoreboard – Crew list – Facebook

Background: The Louis Vuitton America’s Cup World Series (ACWS) features fleet racing in one design foiling AC45 catamarans. The ACWS forms part of the 35th America’s Cup programme, with ACWS scoring contributing to the selection of the 2017 America’s Cup Challenger. Full schedule.

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

ACWS 2016
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 19-20: Fukuoka, Japan

Source: ACEA, Scuttlebutt