Emirates Team New Zealand and the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron announced Barcelona, in the region of Catalonia, as the Host Venue for the 37th America’s Cup to be held in September and October of 2024.
“We are thrilled with the Defender’s selection of Barcelona for the 37th America’s Cup,” said Terry Hutchinson, Skipper and President of Sailing Operations for New York Yacht Club American Magic. “As a team we are focused on understanding the changes of the class rule for AC37 and developing our next generation AC75. Knowing the venue now allows for a more detailed look at both wind and sea state conditions optimizing for Barcelona. Operationally we look forward to being back on the water later in 2022.”
America’s Cup Defender Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton is delighted to announce Barcelona as the Host Venue after a long and competitive venue selection process. “Barcelona really is one of the most recognized cities in the world so to have the ability to host the most recognized sailing event in the world is hugely exciting. As Defender of the America’s Cup, we have always felt the responsibility to grow the event, the audience, and the sport of sailing on a global scale and certainly having the event hosted in a significant city such as Barcelona will allow us to propel the growth trajectory on the global sporting stage. When thinking ahead to the 37th America’s Cup and the AC75’s racing within a few hundred meters of the Barcelona beach, waterfront, and race village fan engagement zones it will be nothing less than spectacular.”
Barcelona is a leading city in terms of sustainability and social impact with ambitions to become Europe’s digital and tech capital, so the alignment with the America’s Cup is clear. Its existing world class facilities for racing, team bases, technical infrastructure, superyachts, and areas for the America’s Cup event village to host fans, hospitality, and media as well as an average wind range of 9-15 knots during the September and October race window, made the city completely fit for purpose.
Integral to the organization of the 37th America’s Cup is the Challenger of Record INEOS Britannia and the Royal Yacht Squadron Ltd who have played an important part in setting the foundations of the next edition of the oldest trophy in international sport. INEOS Britannia Team Principal Sir Ben Ainslie said, “We are delighted the iconic city of Barcelona has been chosen to host the 37th America’s Cup. The historic weather data for Barcelona shows what a fantastic sailing venue it will be. The marina development and race area in Barcelona will offer excellent shore side facilities for the competing teams, alongside a great event village for fans of sports oldest international trophy to enjoy this iconic sporting event.
Further details on the venue and 37th America’s Cup will be announced in due course. “Obviously all of this news is announced in the shadow of the unfathomable war in the Ukraine we are witnessing right now, which clearly puts everything in perspective for us,” said Dalton. “We sincerely hope there is a rapid improvement in the situation, and we would like to send our strong message of support to the people in Ukraine during this period. We look forward to working in partnership with our Host Venue of Barcelona and announcing further details in due course.”
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