Sailing’s 2027 Calendar Runs From Naples to the Fastnet Rock

The 2026 sailing season ended with a preview. In late September, the second Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta brought nine AC40s to the Bay of Naples. America's Cup Media reported tens of thousands of spectators on the Lungomare Caracciolo and thousands of registered boats on the water. Luna Rossa won the final. The organizers also used the occasion to confirm the dates for 2027, the first time the America's Cup will be sailed in Italy.

Naples, May to July

The Louis Vuitton Cup starts on 22 May 2027 with a weekend of AC75 fleet racing, then moves to match racing and ends by 4 July. The Youth America's Cup runs from 2 to 6 June and the Women's America's Cup from 5 to 9 July. The Match begins on 10 July and ends by 19 July at the latest. Emirates Team New Zealand defends, and Sir Ben Ainslie's GB1, sailing for the Royal Yacht Squadron, is challenger of record. Team bases are going up at Bagnoli, at the western end of the bay.

The Solent and the Channel, July

The Royal Ocean Racing Club's Admiral's Cup, revived in 2025, returns from 13 to 28 July 2027, based at Cowes Yacht Haven. Clubs enter two-boat teams, and the standard entry deadline is 28 February 2027. The series ends with the Rolex Fastnet Race, which starts from Cowes on Saturday 24 July and finishes in Cherbourg-en-Cotentin. Organizers expect more than 400 yachts and more than 130,000 visitors over a nine-day festival in the port.

For 2027

• Watch the early rounds of the Louis Vuitton Cup in late May or June. Naples is cooler and rooms are easier to find.
• Book Naples now if you want the Match week in July.
• For the Fastnet, Cherbourg's finish festival is the more relaxed vantage point. The Cowes start is the classic one.