The Italian tire giant Pirelli has deepened its technical collaboration with Luna Rossa, Italy's America's Cup challenger, sharing advanced materials expertise from motorsport to optimize the performance of the team's high-speed foiling sailboats ahead of the 2027 competition in Naples. The partnership embeds Formula 1-derived research into the hydrodynamic design of the yacht's most critical components.
Why This Matters
• Naples will host the America's Cup for the first time in the competition's 176-year history, bringing the event to Italian shores on July 10, 2027.
• Pirelli's materials research, originally developed for high-performance tires, is being adapted to improve the behavior of Luna Rossa's foils and rudder—the underwater "wings" that lift the boat out of the water at speeds exceeding 50 knots.
• The expanded Pirelli branding will appear on the foils and rudder starting September 2026 (AC40 training boat) and November 2026 (AC75 race boat).
• This marks Italy's seventh America's Cup challenge, with Luna Rossa representing the Circolo del Remo e della Vela Italia, a historic Naples yacht club.
From Tires to Foils: The Technology Transfer
Pirelli's role as Official Sponsor and Technical Partner extends beyond traditional sponsorship. The Milan-headquartered company is applying decades of materials science developed for high-performance tires to optimize the underwater appendages of Luna Rossa's AC75—a 75-foot monohull that operates on carbon fiber foils, rising above the water during races.
The collaboration centers on hydrodynamic performance, specifically how the foils and rudder behave during demanding racing phases. Pirelli's engineers draw on research that produced the PNCS (Pirelli Noise Cancelling System), a technology that reduces rolling noise by manipulating material properties and internal geometry. While exact formulations remain undisclosed—America's Cup teams guard technical secrets closely—the transfer involves expertise in material rigidity, weight reduction, stress resistance, and how surfaces interact with fluid dynamics.
Luna Rossa benefits from methodologies established in Formula 1: virtualization, artificial intelligence, and predictive modeling to test materials and configurations before physical trials. This approach saves time and resources in an environment where marginal gains determine outcomes.
The Competitive Landscape
Pirelli's investment places it among a select group of automotive brands leveraging sailing's elite platform. Alfa Romeo also sponsors Luna Rossa for the 2027 campaign, emphasizing shared Italian identity and engineering excellence. Rival syndicates have forged their own tech alliances: American Magic partnered with Parker Hannifin for control systems, Alinghi Red Bull Racing tapped Red Bull's F1 expertise, and INEOS Britannia drew on Mercedes F1 aerodynamic knowledge.
Automotive giants have invested heavily in sailing beyond the America's Cup. Volvo Cars maintains a 25-year partnership with The Ocean Race, DS Automobiles backs SailGP, and BMW previously supported Oracle Team USA. The rationale is consistent: sailing's extreme conditions align closely with high-end automotive R&D, offering real-world testing grounds for materials, sensors, and analytics.
Pirelli's maritime footprint extends to a two-decade partnership with Sacs Tecnorib, the Italian rigid inflatable boat manufacturer, producing over 1,000 Pirelli-branded vessels sold across 30 countries. Models like the Pirelli 1400 and Pirelli 35 have won Red Dot Design Awards.
Local Impact and Infrastructure
For those living in Italy, the 2027 America's Cup represents significant economic and cultural opportunity. Naples will experience infrastructure investment, tourism influx, and international media exposure benefiting the city and the Campania region.
Fastweb, Italy's telecom operator, has signed on as technical partner to provide 5G slicing technology for Luna Rossa, ensuring ultra-low latency connectivity during races. This signals public-private collaboration on digital infrastructure that may accelerate 5G development in Southern Italy.
The partnership also positions Italy as a hub for high-performance manufacturing and materials innovation. Pirelli's presence in both Formula 1 and sailing demonstrates the country's capacity to compete at the intersection of traditional industry and cutting-edge R&D. For investors, suppliers, and technical talent in the Lombardy and Campania regions, the America's Cup campaign offers visibility and potential procurement opportunities tied to advanced manufacturing.
Luna Rossa's victory at the Preliminary Regatta in Cagliari, Sardinia (May 21-24, 2026) marked the official start of the "Road to Naples 2027," setting the momentum for testing configurations that will incorporate Pirelli's contributions.
Understanding the Technical Stakes
The AC75 class demands sophisticated engineering. These boats use foils—underwater wing-like structures—that generate lift as water flows over their surfaces. At sufficient speed, the hull rises entirely above the water, dramatically reducing drag and enabling speeds rivaling powerboats.
The engineering challenge lies in control and stability. Foils must support the boat's weight and withstand sudden loads from waves and maneuvers while remaining light enough to maintain speed. Materials must resist cavitation and maintain structural integrity under stress. The rudder, also a foil, plays a dual role in steering and vertical lift—optimizing its properties can mean the difference between a smooth maneuver and catastrophic loss of control.
This is where Pirelli's research into polymer composites and material properties becomes directly relevant to performance outcomes.
Branding Meets Engineering
Pirelli's logo will appear on the mainsail, foils, and rudder of both the AC40 and the AC75. The branding rollout begins in September 2026 for the AC40 and November 2026 for the AC75, ensuring visibility as Luna Rossa intensifies training and media activities leading into competition.
This integration reflects a broader shift in elite sports: sponsors are no longer passive billboard holders but active technical contributors. In this case, Pirelli's involvement in materials development ties its brand to measurable performance outcomes rather than exposure alone.
The Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup (reflecting the luxury brand's principal sponsorship) will draw global audiences and showcase Naples as a center of maritime tradition and modern innovation.
