Five International Sailing Teams Converge on Cagliari for America's Cup Historic Debut
In May 2026, Italy takes its first steps toward hosting the America's Cup—a milestone 176 years in the making. Five elite sailing teams will gather in Cagliari for preliminary fleet racing aboard AC40 foiling monotypes, marking the opening salvo of the 38th America's Cup campaign and cementing Italy's role as the first nation in the trophy's history to stage the full competition cycle.
The Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli home base in Cagliari will host races from May 21 to 24 on the Gulf of Angels, with the Kiwi defender Emirates Team New Zealand, Swiss challenger Tudor Team Alinghi, British frontrunner GB1 Athena Pathway, and French newcomer La Roche-Posay Racing Team all competing. While these preliminary results carry no points toward the Louis Vuitton Challenger Series, they offer teams critical benchmarking as design protocols freeze and crew rosters are finalized later this year.
Why This Moment Matters for Sardinia
For nearly twelve years, Luna Rossa has quietly built its operational headquarters at Cagliari's Molo Ichnusa, drawn by the gulf's consistent thermal winds and 300-day sailing season. The team trained Olympic squads here and launched AC75 hulls in both the 2021 Prada Cup (which Luna Rossa won) and the 2024 Louis Vuitton Cup cycle. Now, that investment pays dividends: Sardinia becomes the launching pad for Italy's historic America's Cup journey.
Regional Tourism Minister Cuccureddu framed the event as homage to Azzurra, the first Italian challenger in 1983, which also trained in Sardinian waters. "If the outcome we all hope for comes to pass, Sardinia could host the Match itself," Cuccureddu noted, alluding to Luna Rossa's ambition to dethrone the defending champions and claim venue selection rights for a potential defense.
Cagliari Mayor Massimo Zedda emphasized infrastructure readiness: "We present ourselves as a location where you can practice sailing 365 days a year. Our climate allows Olympic teams to train every single day without weather windows constraining the schedule."
What Residents Should Know
The preliminary regatta offers Sardinia's hospitality sector a mid-May revenue injection. Hotel occupancy in Cagliari and surrounding coastal towns is expected to peak, with team support staff, international media, and sailing enthusiasts booking waterfront properties. Local marinas and chandleries stand to benefit from provisioning contracts and emergency repair work.
For those planning to attend, the Race Village at Molo Ichnusa opens daily from 10:00 AM with free admission. Spectators can watch races from Poetto Beach, the Bastione Saint Remy terraces, or private boat excursions departing from Marina Piccola. All race days (May 22–24) will stream live on America's Cup digital platforms, with Italian public broadcaster RAI carrying domestic coverage. Evening programming includes crew Q&A sessions and technical briefings from design coordinators.
Transport disruptions will be minimal, but port access restrictions apply to the Molo Ichnusa area from May 20 through 25. The Cagliari Port Authority has established a 500-meter exclusion zone around the race course between Poetto Beach and Capo Sant'Elia during competition windows (3:00 PM to 5:00 PM, May 22–24). Recreational boaters should consult navigational warnings before launching.
Opening ceremonies take place May 21 at 5:00 PM at Bastione Saint Remy, where Italy's Minister of Sport Andrea Abodi, Campania Region President Roberto Fico, and Sardinia Governor Alessandra Todde will officiate.
The Racing Format
All five entries will compete in eight fleet contests aboard AC40 foilers capable of exceeding 40 knots on the hydrofoil. The top two teams advance to a match-race final on May 24 between 3:00 PM and 5:00 PM local time. This format gives teams a genuine test of crew coordination, control systems, and foil optimization before the protocol freezes later this year.
A New Era for America's Cup
The 38th America's Cup introduces sweeping changes through the newly formed America's Cup Partnership (ACP), which grants equal governance authority to all competing syndicates. A €75 million budget ceiling per team aims to curb runaway spending. Technical regulations mandate five-person crews (down from eight), with battery-powered hydraulics replacing manual grinding stations.
Crucially, teams must reuse AC75 hulls from the 37th edition if available or purchase secondhand models, shifting development resources toward appendage optimization and crew choreography. The mandatory female crew member rule has accelerated recruitment from Olympic classes, with several teams fielding two women in their AC40 lineups.
The Naples Endgame
Naples will stage the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Match starting July 10, 2027, with racing unfolding in the Gulf of Naples beneath Mount Vesuvius. Team bases will occupy the Bagnoli district, part of a broader urban regeneration scheme, while the Race Village stretches along the downtown waterfront between Castel dell'Ovo and Posillipo.
The Italian government has framed the event as a catalyst for infrastructure modernization and marine-economy development, dovetailing with Naples's designation as European Capital of Sport 2026. Preliminary regattas in Cagliari (May 2026), followed by additional fleet races and a final AC75 preliminary in Naples in early 2027, will set the stage for the Challenger Selection Series and the Match.
Team Profiles
Emirates Team New Zealand arrives with a 40-person delegation mixing 2021 and 2024 defense veterans with youth sailors. Three-time Cup winner Blair Tuke has assumed an executive strategy role, focusing on five-person crew dynamics. The Kiwis will deploy two AC40s to test control systems and foil configurations carried over from the AC37 campaign.
Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli arrives with two AC40s, bringing roughly 30 crew and shore staff. Skipper Max Sirena has described Cagliari as a "crucial test" to gauge progress against rivals. The team's prototype has been trialing new materials and appendage designs at the Molo Ichnusa dock since January.
Tudor Team Alinghi brings 30 personnel after re-entering through the ACP framework. The Swiss squad terminated its Red Bull partnership but retains Tudor Watches as title sponsor. Rebuilding AC75 spars and hulls from scratch, Cagliari serves as a critical shakedown for crew integration.
GB1 Athena Pathway, operating under the INEOS Britannia umbrella as Challenger of Record, fields two AC40s and approximately 30 staff. Skipper Ben Ainslie has emphasized inclusivity and financial sustainability through the ACP charter. The British squad, which won the 2024 Louis Vuitton Cup, is widely tipped as a podium contender.
La Roche-Posay Racing Team represents the return of French competitive sailing to the Cup after decades of absence. The team's representative, Emily Llorens, cited Cagliari's "extraordinary marine conditions" as ideal for stress-testing crew coordination on the foiling platform.
What This Means for Cagliari's Future
On the cultural front, the regatta reinforces Cagliari's identity as a global sailing hub—a narrative the city has cultivated since America's Cup World Series stopovers in 2012 and 2013 drew spectators and international attention. Local officials view the preliminary round as a dry run for potentially hosting Louis Vuitton Challenger Series races or youth and women's events in future cycles, particularly if Luna Rossa advances deep into the 2027 campaign.
For residents, the event underscores Cagliari's evolution from a regional port into a node of elite sport logistics, with the Luna Rossa base now a permanent fixture of the city skyline and a source of civic pride intertwined with Sardinia's maritime heritage.
