Made for mainstream
SailGP is winning over fans, hitting record broadcast numbers and proving there’s an appetite for flying F50 catamaran racing.
Photography by SailGP
10 November 2022
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SailGP, one of the world’s fastest growing sport leagues, is proving that high-octane, hydrofoiling sailboat racing is ready-made for the mainstream.
A CBS broadcast on 23 October showcasing the league’s race weekend in Saint-Tropez – the Range Rover France Sail Grand Prix – was the most watched sailing event on US broadcast in over 30 years*, averaging 1.609 million viewers.
The viewership numbers prove that edge-of-your-seat racing isn’t just for motorsport and there is an increasing appetite for SailGP’s unique racing format that features the sport’s best athletes competing in flying F50 catamarans that consistently hits speeds approaching 60 mph (100 km/h).
The CBS broadcast showcased racing from SailGP’s fastest race day yet at the Range Rover France Sail Grand Prix | Saint-Tropez, where the French SailGP Team recorded a top speed of 62 mph (99.94 km/h) and where the US SailGP Team had its first-ever SailGP event victory, led by SailGP driver and sailing legend Jimmy Spithill.
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In just its third season, SailGP has grown from six teams to nine, and five events to 11 – all set at iconic locations around the world (including San Francisco and Chicago); with more expansion on both fronts already announced for Season 4.
“This new action-packed, high adrenaline style of sailing is definitely attracting a broader audience; it’s fast-paced, exciting and brilliant to watch,” said Russell Coutts, SailGP CEO and co-founder. “We’ve focused on creating a racing property not just for sailing fans, but anyone who appreciates top quality racing and incredible competition.”
A recent recipient of Broadcast Sports Awards ‘Best International Program’, the SailGP model has been engaging existing and new fans at a rapid pace. The league’s broadcast success underscores a banner year for the global racing property that – now just over halfway through its third season – includes already increasing its global dedicated TV audience by 56 percent from last season to over 64.5 million, and growing its total live digital viewership by 240 percent in the same time period (26.6 million).
Viewers can catch the next action-packed broadcast of SailGP racing on CBS this Sunday, November 13 at 5pm ET, which includes USA highlights from the Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucia-Cádiz presented by NEAR.
The Dubai Sail Grand Prix presented by P&O Marinas will be held 12 & 13 November.
Dubai is famous for its amazing buildings – including the beautiful Museum of the Future and the Burj Khalifa (at 830-metres, the world’s tallest building)- and vast shopping malls that are home to huge aquariums and indoor ski slopes, all happily sitting beside a rich history and culture.
This includes the traditional Souks, including the Spice and Gold Souks lining the Dubai Creek, which itself is home to traditional fishing Dhows and offers direct access to the beautiful, warm, blue waters of the Arabian Gulf. Here, fans in Dubai will experience the incredible excitement of the foiling F50 catamarans for the first time.
Dubai is famously a melting pot of nationalities and cultures, so every national SailGP team is guaranteed a large following on the dockside. Excitement and drama will be nonstop as the fleet of identical F50s fly by spectators at speeds of up to 100 kph!
In the last Season 3 event of 2022, the Dubai Sail Grand Prix is the 7th stop of the global sailing championship after the Spain Sail Grand Prix | Andalucía – Cadíz. Dubai Sail Grand Prix presented by P&O Marinas is held in collaboration with P&O Marinas, the City of Dubai and the Dubai Sports Council.
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