Entering the Brave New World of the America' s Cup Partnership
by Richard Gladwell 16 Oct 12:15 NZDT
Naples Fanzone - Louis Vuitton America's Cup Venue - Naples - September 2025 © America's Cup Media
It is often said that you read a new set of rules twice.
The first time to see what they say, and a second, much longer read, to see what isn't said. Here's our analysis from the second read of the media statement issued by the America's Cup Event on Wednesday.
Firstly, it doesn't tell us much more than we heard at the Protocol signing over two months ago.
There are many "he saids" from the various leaders of the parties involved in the still-secret ACP agreement, which aims to describe a Brave New World for the 150-year-old America's Cup competition.
On the Protocol signing announcement on August 12, at the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron's clubhouse, several questions were asked as to both the contents of the Terms Sheet and the America's Cup Partnership.
These were deflected by the four representatives of the Challengers, Defenders and the Commodores of their respective Clubs. ETNZ CEO Grant Dalton claimed the documents were "hundreds of pages" long, which, in hindsight, doesn't seem surprising, given the long list of lawyers and others appended to the bottom of last night's announcement.
The salient point from the media statement was that the Entry Period would close at the end of November, or in just two weeks.
In the Protocol, the Entry Period is deemed to have commenced on August 19, 2025. It closes 28 days after the Challenger, Royal Yacht Squadron, and the Defender, Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron, sign the Partnership agreement.
That puts the undisclosed sign-off date around Friday, October 3, or a couple of weeks after the two parties publicly signed the Protocol.
According to the Protocol, the intending teams - presumably the 2024 teams, plus any that had indicated serious interest to the Royal Yacht Squadron. That group of Possibles and Probables were, according to the Protocol, given "read only" access to the draft documents from August 28, 2025.
The bottom line, with all that data analysis and minutiae, is that the intending teams have had access to the relevant documents for over six weeks and should be at the point where they can decide whether to enter before the end of the Entry Period, in a couple of weeks.
That date is significant because it is the period during which their entry, subject to vetting, must be accepted.
After that date, and until the end of January 2026, they can make a Late Entry, pay the €7million Entry fee, €2million of which is an advance to the Partnership, and will be repaid at a later date. In addition, some smaller fees must be paid, and a Late Fee that accumulates at a rate of €100,000 per month from October 1 until the end of January, or, in the worst case, €400,000.
The two-month-old Protocol states that the Late Entry clubs must sign a further agreement, a "Form of Adherence", accepting what has already been agreed by the America's Cup Partnership. The Late Challenger does not have to join ACP immediately, but may do so later at ACP's discretion, on conditions unanimously set by the ACP Board.
The ACP Board is an ongoing body which survives subsequent America's Cups. It is composed of the Founding Partners and others admitted to the exclusive Club by unanimous vote, subject to conditions.
Its overriding function is to put an end to the current 150-year practice of the America's Cup, which is like driving down a road with a fleet of new cars, and at the end of the current route, everyone stops while a new road is built, and everyone takes off again, only to repeat the process in three years.
It's not the ideal way to run a sport, but agree with it or not, that is the modern America's Cup.
It must be said that the newly inked ACP Board is not (yet) recognised under the Deed of Gift for the America's Cup. But it is a free world, Cup teams can operate by association and successfully under the Mutual Consent conditions of the Deed of Gift—the 19th-century document registered with the New York Supreme Court that governs the basic rules of conduct for the America's Cup.
Part of the Deed is the provision for Mutual Consent between the Challenger and Defender, which can legally give effect to certain decisions of ACP.
There is no mention in the media release of an approach to the New York Supreme Court to have an amendment to the Deed of Gift made to accommodate operating the America's Cup in the Brave New World of ACP.
Only three Deed of Gift amendments have been made in the past - two in 1956 to get the Cup underway after World War 2, and the J-class era of the 1930s. At that point, the Cup had been languishing at the New York Yacht Club, and to generate Challenger interest and give effect to the intentions of the now-deceased donor of the trophy, the load waterline length of yachts competing for the Cup was reduced from 69ft to 44ft. The requirement for a challenger to sail to the venue on her own bottom was also removed. The changes opened the way for the entry of the 12 Metre class, which was sailed during the 30 years 1958-1987. The third occurred in 1984, after Australia II won the Cup, and the permitted window, or the Southern Hemisphere Amendment for the Cup, allowed racing to take place between November 1 and May 1.
The point with all three is that without the New York Supreme Court agreeing to an application from the New York Yacht Club for the Deed of Gift to be amended, in respect of the first two, the Cup would have remained on ice for several more years, until a complying letter of challenge was received. The third amendment was only necessary to enable the Cup to be contested Down Under during the summer sailing months.
There is a common point with all three Amendments is that without them, the intent of the donor of the America's Cup would have been frustrated.
In approving the amendments, the Court stood in the donor's shoes and ruled that it would give effect to what it believed he would have approved. The change to an America's Cup Partnership would seem to lack that same imperative, given that the Cup has maintained a regular pattern of competition for the past 67 years.
Without specific sanction from the Deed of Gift, the ACP will not be able to negotiate and allocate future Cup matches regardless of which Club is the current holder. Under the default provisions of the Deed of Gift, the holder has the sole right to determine the Cup venue.
What has happened with the formation of the America's Cup Partnership is that both the Challenger and the Defender have generously transferred all their rights into the new Partnership. Some would say that the lunatics have been given the keys to the asylum.
As it stands, without the specific sanction of the New York Supreme Court, when RNZYS loses the Cup, the new Defender can either choose to continue with the ACP structure and its intention to dictate America's Cup arrangements on a two-year cycle. Or, the new Defending Club can pull the pin on the arrangement and, in the absence of a fourth Amendment by the NYSC, can stipulate that the Cup will be sailed in its home waters and not at the behest of ACP's calendar, and apply to the NYSC for an enforcing decision, in its favour, if necessary.
Otherwise, it is over to the ACP to operate like any normal class/controlling association, similar to F1, to allocate and organise championships (aside from the actual America's Cup Match), handle sponsorship and event management, media deals, etc and anything else to which the Partnership sets its mind.
Of course, the elephant in the America's Cup room is SailGP, which is essentially a competing circuit, well established, but lacking the prestige of the America's Cup. At present, SailGP is tolerated by the Cup teams, who see it as a 14 regattas/year - out of Cup competitive sailing for their sailors.
But between Matches, the America's Cup desperately needs to raise its profile, which means more preliminary events involving both AC40s and AC75s.
SailGP conflict is inevitable, unless the ACP objective is just to run a couple of events a year, and leave SailGP to rule the roost.
Part of the ACP agenda is to provide a stable, ongoing platform for teams, breaking the current boom-bust cycle that has been the way of life for Cup participants for the last century and a half. The reality of that objective is more events, switching to a two-year Cup cycle, instead of the usual three or four years, to give more sponsor exposure and build a credible, enduring media product.
That means more events. And more events mean more conflict with SailGP - which is a prowling lion, not a sleeping dog.
The ACP approach was tried in a different form in the lead-up to the 2017 with the creation of the Framework under the aegis of the then Defender, Golden Gate Yacht Club/Oracle Racing. Five of the six teams signed up, and the sixth, the Royal NZ Yacht Squadron, refused. Had the Kiwis not won the 2017 America's Cup, the Framework would have been very similar to ACP, provided the Defender and Challenger were prepared to give up their Deed of Gift Rights.
But instead, RNZYS won the Cup and the Defence rights, and exercised those in their own way. The Framework collapsed, but it spawned SailGP - using the same one-design wing-sailed foiling catamarans sailed in Bermuda. And the rest is history.
From here, the usual practice is for RNZYS to announce, at the end of the Entry Period the number of Challenges it has received, and accepted. Then it is over to the Challenging Clubs and Team to "out" themselves, at a time and way of their own choosing.
To date, the Challenger of Record - the Royal Yacht Squadron, is confirmed. Italy's Luna Rossa has confirmed in casual conversation that their Challenge has been accepted. France, having reverted to their original name of K-Challenge, have published video of the team sailing their AC40. They are also very active on the SailGP circuit, and lie in fifth place of 12 teams in the Season championship.
The situation of the other two teams from the 2024 America's Cup, American Magic and the Swiss team Alinghi is less certain.
A second Italian Challenger is believed to have strong interest.
The shape of the 2027 America's Cup, should come into much sharper focus by the end of October.