The team that lit up Barcelona in more ways than one and staged a dynamic, forward-looking challenge for the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup, exits at the semi-final stage of the Louis Vuitton Cup with lessons learned and a laser-focus on continuity. It has been a pleasure for Cup fans around the world to watch this young Swiss team develop into a potent force at the highest level of sailing and, with a winning pedigree, they leave the competition with a sense that this is far from over and that there is unfinished business to be done in the America’s Cup.
From the very start, this challenge for the oldest trophy in international sport was determined to do things their way and with fun all along the way. Launching the challenge on behalf of the Société Nautique de Genève, the club that became the first ever European winner and held the America’s Cup trophy from 2003 to 2010, a deep, fully-integrated partnership with Red Bull was announced.
Team Principle and Founder of the famous ‘Alinghi’ sailing team, Ernesto Bertarelli set out a clear vision, saying at the launch: “While keeping the winning spirit that has always animated Alinghi, we want for this challenge to do something totally different, totally new, totally fresh. When we imagined with (the late) Dietrich Mateschitz the involvement of Red Bull in the America’s Cup, he said: ‘Our way is not to get into the sport as sponsors, but to blend into the team, to form a true partnership, to nurture young athletes and turn them into the best in their field.’ He also proposed that we should make contributions to give the America’s Cup itself a new dimension. With Red Bull we are equal partners in this venture. They will bring their competence, energy and strength in creating performing teams, and we bring our experience in sailing and winning the America’s Cup. Alinghi Red Bull Racing will shine a new light on the event.”
And shine a light they did. Immediately the team purchased the very first-generation Emirates Team New Zealand AC75 ‘Te Aihe’ and set-up a temporary base at the mouth of the Port Vell in Barcelona – the first team to arrive in the host city. Their effect was immediate, and they became a wonderful advert, as a team, as a ‘family’, for the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup.
They lit up the W-Hotel in red every evening before they sailed the next day and integrated with every facet of Barcelona life, whilst actively documenting their steep learning curve in the monohull foiling AC75 that they commissioned in August 2022 and first sailed in September 2022.
Sailing through that first winter, it was tough not just for the sailors but the shore team and technical teams too, with new processes and protocols to adapt to. But progress was rapid and the sailing team, a mix of young, talented Swiss sailors was fused with senior Cup-winning team members to strike a perfect balance of youth and experience.
Arnaud Psarofaghis emerged as the figurehead for the project, almost from the start, whilst the likes of Maxime Bachelin, Bryan Mettraux, Nicolas Rolaz, Nico Charbonnier and Yves Detrey became his trusted sailing team and on-water sparring partners.
The arrival of the team’s first AC40 in January 2023 was a step-change in preparations and that first boat provided a further learning platform for the sailors. When the second arrived in May 2023, the opportunity to start foiling match-racing (with a huge focus on pre-starts) was realised.
Shoreside, things were really happening too, and having secured a prime central spot in the Port Vell nestled between the Mare Magnum Shopping Centre and the downtown Aquarium, the new and impressive Alinghi Red Bull Racing base was taking shape. A vast boating and advanced training complex with spectacular hospitality facilities, the base was operational for the team at the end of July 2023 ahead of the full opening in September 2023 and became the new focal point for the team as they zoned in on the upcoming Preliminary Regattas in Vilanova i La Geltrú, Spain and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
The months of training preceding the Preliminary Regattas paid off with Alinghi Red Bull Racing always in the hunt for podium places and regularly front-running in the fleet races with excellent starts and good pace.
Final execution was something the team needed more time to work on, so after the second Preliminary Regatta in Jeddah, the team elected to maintain a winter training base in the Obhur Creek where they kept their two AC40’s and brought in the experience of Dean Barker and the competitive edge of Phil Robertson as coaches to help sharpen tactics.
Whilst the sailors prepared for action, back in Ecublens at the Decision SA build facility near Lausanne, the new Alinghi Red Bull Racing AC75 was coming together, and at the end of February 2024, the boat was loaded onto a truck for the road-delivery to Barcelona and the final fit-out, ahead of a truly stunning reveal at the beginning of April.
Again it was another first for the team with the latest-generation AC75 being introduced to the world under the cover of darkness and spotlights, drawing gasps at its radical lines. ‘BoatOne’ as she would become known, teased the senses with a cut away stern, Venturi-style bumps on the bow, an elegant deck and an aggressive hull-form from stem to stern. Excitement built, not only within the team, but around the world, and with superb additional marketing coming in the form of a whole host of Red Bull and Tudor athletes, the buzz around the team built to a crescendo.
By mid-April, ‘BoatOne’ was sailing, showing impressive manoeuvrability as well as speed – both in a straight-line and at take-off – that had never been seen before in the AC75 class. The sailors pushed through the commissioning phase impressively and continued to work the boat up to race pace, even bringing in their AC40 with Barker and Robertson onboard for pre-start practice, before a dismasting on June 13 2024 – the first we have seen in the AC75 class. Exact cause remains unknown outside of the team, but just four-days later, Alinghi Red Bull Racing were back on the water, sailing and training again, highlighting the outstanding shore team that the syndicate had assembled – some of the finest in the America’s Cup.
Fortune, though, was not in Alinghi Red Bull Racing’s favour, as just two days before the start of the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta at the end of August 2024, a new mast that was literally hours into commissioning, came tumbling down and put the team on the back foot. Once again, the shore team swung into action and got the boat ready for the regatta, but just one win from five races was not the result that the team had hoped for.
As the Louis Vuitton Cup began, the speed deficiency of Alinghi Red Bull Racing was brutally exposed as all the Challenger teams had stepped forward in performance. It was immediately apparent, almost from the outset, that the Swiss were in a fight for survival to make it through to the semi-finals – especially after an opening day loss to Orient Express Racing. By the end of the first Round Robin, the team had scored no points and were at the foot of the table with all eyes on the opening race of the second Round Robin against the French.
A well-taken win in that race – after the French fell off the foils – brought the Swiss back level on points and then a default win against NYYC American Magic – with the Americans breaking down in the pre-start – gave the team the box-seat for a place in the semi-finals, although a final day nail-biter ensued with a number of permutations, none of which came to pass. Alinghi Red Bull Racing made it through to the Louis Vuitton Cup semi-final and Sir Ben Ainslie elected to pit INEOS Britannia, the Challenger of Record and top team in the standings after the Round Robins, against the Swiss.
An immediate string of four straight losses against the British, some by a distance, showed the level required as the competition progressed. A win from behind in race five, with ‘BoatOne’ skirting around a displacement Britannia that had fallen off the foils, offered hope of a turnaround and they magnificently kept their composure when the conditions were tricky to score another race win on what was to be their final day in the competition.
The manner of their exit showed the grit, determination and never-say-die attitude that had been fostered within the Swiss team and the classy congratulations offered by skipper Arnaud Psarofaghis to Sir Ben Ainslie and the INEOS Britannia team, immediately after their exit, was a credit to the whole programme.
The scoreline of 5–2 was non-reflective of just how hard they had pushed the Challenger of Record and Sir Ben Ainslie repaid the warm-feelings saying: “I think they’re a great organisation, and as a team obviously they have an amazing history in the America’s Cup with Ernesto Bertarelli and the rest of the team. Now a younger generation, with a young spirit, led by Arnaud is great to see coming through to try and match the history and achievements of the past. I think they’ve got an exciting future in the America’s Cup.”
Speaking dockside afterwards, Pietro Sibello, one of the on-water coaches for Alinghi Red Bull Racing, was gracious in defeat as they exited the competition at the semi-final stage of the Louis Vuitton Cup, saying: “I am feeling happy for the great job we did. We are a new team and if we look back to when we started the campaign two and a half years ago, we have made great progress. I mean to be fighting so closely with a team like INEOS Britannia – who for sure will be stronger for the next rounds of the Cup – I think we need to be proud and happy, especially that we fought to the end.”
Alinghi Red Bull Racing will be sorely missed in the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup. They brought fun, glamour and sporting excellence whilst attracting a whole army of new, highly-engaged, youthful supporters through their superb tie-up with the Red Bull brand.
For sure, they will be back at the 38th America’s Cup – Silvio Arrivabene confirmed as such in multiple interviews – and with the superb support and backing of Ernesto Bertarelli the Swiss will remain a potent force at the very top of the international sailing world.
Tom Slingsby, helmsman of the NYYC American Magic team and one of the world’s finest sailors, paid tribute to Alinghi Red Bull Racing as they exited the competition saying: “For me it’s been great to see Alinghi back in the competition. Their history in this sport the way they came and won (the America’s Cup) on their first attempt – I don’t think that’s ever been done before. Ernesto Bertarelli is a great supporter of sailing, and they have run an amazing campaign over there. I know how hard everyone in the Swiss team works. They have been here for a long time in Barcelona, and they have been putting in long days, long hours. So just hats off to their whole team for an amazing campaign – and hopefully we see them again next time.”
Iain Murray, Race Director further paid tribute to the Swiss team saying: “Obviously they’re a highly experienced America’s Cup team with a great history and depth. Coming here a competing in entirely different boat to where they left off, even though they’ve done a lot of campaigning in smaller foiling boats, to come up to this game and restart the whole process of an America’s Cup challenge it’s been really impressive. For the team to take the New Zealand first generation boat (Te Aihe), build a team, build a base, build everything and get to this level of performance is very impressive. I think they have laid a really good base and foundation for the future, and it will be great to see them come back bigger and stronger again.”
Thank you, Alinghi Red Bull Racing, it has been a pleasure to watch your development over the past two-and-a-half years. This ending is the start of a very bright future.
