The America's Cup may speak of greater collaboration between teams, but secrecy remains as deeply embedded in the event's culture as it has ever been.
When racing gets underway at the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup Preliminary Regatta Sardinia in Cagliari from 21 to 24 May 2026, the official language will likely emphasise partnership and shared governance. Out on the water, the priorities that matter are performance and the protection of hard-won intellectual advantage.
This regatta represents the first competitive racing of the new cycle. Teams will take to the water in equalised AC40 yachts, four sailors aboard each boat, with fleet racing determining which two crews advance to a match race final. The platforms are identical across the fleet, but identical equipment has never produced identical results. Execution will be the separator.
At this point in the cycle, no new hull launches are on the horizon. The development gains that matter now are buried inside control systems, mechanical refinements, sail configurations, and the kind of crew coordination that only accumulates through relentless repetition. Most of that work is invisible from shore, and teams have every reason to keep it that way.
As Giulio Bertelli recently stated, "Everything is valuable. Everything is of value to someone else."
Cagliari is far more than a curtain-raiser. It will be the first occasion on which teams can draw reliable comparisons between themselves and their rivals ahead of Naples 2027. Coaches and tacticians will watch closely: how quickly a boat accelerates out of a manoeuvre, how stable it holds in foiling flight, how cleanly each crew manages transitions as wind strength shifts. The road to Naples begins in Sardinia.
