The 36th edition of the America’s Cup will see defending outfit, Emirates Team New Zealand, seek to retain their crown against the best sailing talent the world has to offer in the summer of 2021.
The champions, representing the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, clinched their third America’s Cup in 2017 to draw level as the second-most successful team in the competition’s history. San Diego Yacht Club have also won three championships, while New York Yacht Club are the runaway record-holders with 25 to their name.
Stars and Stripes Team USA were the last team to join the official list of challengers for the 36th America’s Cup, joining American Magic from the New York Yacht Club, as well as Malta Altus Challenge, Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand. Luna Rossa and Emirates Team New Zealand look like the major favourites to contest the crown, but with more than two years until the competition gets underway, new challengers could easily arise.
In what represents a significant change to the previous competition in 2017, teams will compete in the AC75 class and were recently introduced to the new foil cant system, which features four-metre composite wings and arms, used to control lift and speed while racing.
American Magic skipper Terry Hutchinson spoke with tachtracing.life (h/t New Zealand Herald) after testing out his team’s U.S. test boat and said his experience was a rocky one:
“The first day that I was on the boat when we foiled it was quite windy and some of the systems weren’t operating perfectly. And so the boat was a bit loose and we were a bit out of control – and that was exactly how it felt. It was almost like getting into a car with my 16-year-old son driving for the first time. Just wondering what could possibly go wrong.”
Project manager Peter Thomas was the man behind the creation of the new foil cant system for the AC75 boats, and he said, per AmericasCup.com: “It’s not something you normally do in the America’s Cup but the main objective of the whole project is for the system to be reliable and safe for every AC75 on the water. These boats will reach very high speeds and when going into a manoeuvre they need the system to work. Each team must be sure that when they hit the button and they want to drop the foil it drops, when they want to raise the foil, it raises.”
A faster sport is only bound to make for more interest from fans and betting opportunities on a contest competing at higher speeds.
2019 America’s Cup schedule
The 2021 America’s Cup is scheduled to take place between Saturday, March 6 and Sunday, March 21, 2021. The Prada Cup will take place between January and February 2021 and decides the team that will take on defenders Emirates Team New Zealand for the 36th America’s Cup.
The America’s Cup World Series is a series of preliminary regattas that acts as a qualifying period for other events and the Prada Cup. World Series races will be held across 2019 and 2020 to determine the order for the America’s Cup’s later events.
36th America’s Cup Betting & Odds
You can bet on the 2021 America’s Cup at bet365 and Unibet. Odds are normally available 3 weeks prior the event and can be checked at odds betting sites like Oddschecker. In-play betting is also available via mobile apps.
Where to Get Tickets
Ticket information for the 36th America’s Cup is yet to be released, but monitor the events page at AmericasCup.com for updates and announcements. Ticketmaster.com will also provide search options to purchase tickets when they become available.
