Germany's island town of Sassnitz is making its debut on the SailGP calendar, hosting all 12 teams in the sheltered waters off the north-east coast of Rügen. The course is set hard against the harbour wall, giving spectators an unusually close view of the action. Organisers are expecting more than 11,000 fans to fill the grandstands and waterfront lounges across the weekend.
Racing is scheduled from 3.30pm to 5pm CEST on both Saturday and Sunday. The forecast points to easterlies and flat water with winds in the mid-teens, a combination that rewards precision and punishes mistakes. At these speeds, there is almost no time to recover from an error.
The fleet has been making the most of the build-up. France's Quentin Delapierre described Thursday's time on the water as "a smooth practice afternoon", while Germany's Erik Heil kept things brief after his team's first laps out on the bay: "Sassnitz. We are out!"
The Australian Flying Roos have been working through their drills under the guidance of coach Ben "Bull" Durham, with a particular focus on T-foil manoeuvres and controlling the boat in tight, boat-on-boat situations. Durham was candid about the challenge the venue presents. "It's a brand-new venue for SailGP and for the Australian team. No one on our crew has raced here before," he said. "We've taken away a lot of lessons from recent events."
Red Bull Italy put in five hours on the water in a fresh easterly on Thursday and came away describing the session as "fast and pumped for the days ahead". Denmark's Tom Johnson struck an optimistic tone about ROCKWOOL Racing's chances during what is shaping up as an intense European leg, saying it is "only a matter of time" before his team is back on the podium.
The season standings going into Sassnitz make for compelling reading. New Zealand's Black Foils lead the 2025 leaderboard, sitting two points ahead of Spain's Los Gallos. The top four is separated by just four points, with Emirates GBR and Australia both firmly in contention.
The British event in July proved significant. New Zealand claimed the win, Spain dropped ground, and a penalty handed to Australia generated considerable debate in the paddock. With three European rounds compressed into five weeks, momentum can shift rapidly between events.
Germany's own SailGP team carries the weight of home-crowd expectation into the weekend. Driver Erik Heil and his crew share the same disadvantage as every other team in that nobody in the fleet has raced at Sassnitz before, but the energy of a local crowd roaring them on could yet prove a factor as Heil looks to haul the team clear of mid-fleet.
The geography of Sassnitz tends to produce two distinct wind patterns: shifting offshore westerlies or more consistent onshore easterlies. The weekend forecast favours the latter, which sailors describe as champagne conditions. Flat water lets teams drive their F50s to higher speeds without the drag of wave action, and that translates into rapid mark roundings and little room at the top of the course.
SailGP commentator Stevie Morrison sees the benign conditions as something that could actually intensify the competition rather than soften it. "When the boats are easier to sail, everyone can push them harder, and faster," he said.
Away from the racecourse, there has been movement on the commercial front. The Swiss SailGP Team has secured new investment from the Firmenich family, bolstering the team's long-term prospects. In the United States, strategic investment firm Next 3, backed by the Tisch family who are co-owners of the New York Giants, has come on board as a backer of the American team, a development that reflects growing confidence in SailGP's commercial appeal.
As final preparations wrap up and crews turn their attention to the opening start, there is a particular edge to the atmosphere in Sassnitz. Sell-out crowds, near-perfect forecast conditions, and a leaderboard too tight to read with any confidence have combined to set up what promises to be two days of high-speed, high-stakes racing on the Baltic Sea.
