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With the FIFA World Cup looming and MetLife Stadium gearing up to host the final, New York City is about to become the epicenter for the world's most heated global sporting rivalries. But you didn't have to wait for the summer to see the world's top athletes put their national pride on the line.
As if on cue to preview that exciting tension, SailGP returned to New York Harbor for the 2026 Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix. Instead of running the pitch, teams from Australia, Spain, the United States, and many more countries were literally flying above the waves on F50 catamarans, pulling the same G-forces as F1 drivers, all with the Manhattan skyline and Statue of Liberty in the background.
Here's an inside look at the fierce competitors and high-speed chaos on display for this spectacular race weekend.
Sailing’s ‘United Nations’ on Water
The stage and fan experience SailGP presents in New York City is always special thanks in part to the exciting, close-to-shore spectacle of the boats themselves. One other big variable in that equation is the teams, which, despite the increasing addition of corporate title sponsors, are still tied to the nations they represent by more than just flags they race under. There are even strict minimums as to the number of sailors aboard who must hail from the given country, with teams like the United States focused on running 100% national rosters.
The impact? Even unfamiliar passersby can spot a flag high atop the sails and start cheering. And for the athletes, there’s a greater sense of pride representing their country, with each sharing their perspective on the importance of racing in New York City.
“It’s a dream of mine to represent our nation and compete for the U.S. team. We’re pumped to have these home events with everyone here cheering us on—our friends, our family, our fans here,” said Taylor Canfield, driver of the United States SailGP Team.
“It’s really special to be representing your country, especially globally in a league like this,” said Strategist for Emirates Great Britain SailGP Team, Hannah Mills. “We all want to represent our countries and deliver.”
Diego Botín, driver for the Spanish Los Gallos SailGP Team, summarized it perfectly: “This is like the World Cup of sailing. And representing our country here in an iconic city like New York is amazing.”
Battling the Elements and Each Other
Like the World Cup, none of this pomp and circumstance would matter without exciting, close-quarters racing. Speaking with team drivers (the sailors who steer the massive F50s), New York sits on the smaller side of the SailGP racecourse spectrum (“short-medium” as Canfield put it), giving fans their money’s worth in tight turns and side-by-side racing. And with races lasting roughly 10 minutes each, there’s little downtime.
“At an event like New York, with the wind coming through the skyline of Manhattan, it gets very shifty, very patchy, and odd things can happen,” said Tom Slingsby, driver for the Bonds Australia SailGP Team. “We look at this event as a bit of a danger event for us. And it's going to be a real challenge to try to get through this weekend unscathed. We're looking at the forecast and anything can happen, really. It's going to be really tough conditions to sail in.”
Everyone was in fact at the mercy of Mother Nature, with heavy gusts of wind on Saturday preventing crane operators from putting more than four of the F50 catamarans into the water. While there were fewer boats in play, it did make for some exciting exhibition matches with 2-3 teams racing at a time.
Sunday was a much different story, with the full fleet taking to the water for a spectacular set of races: three races followed by a winner-takes-all final among the top three teams.
The first three races were full of ups and downs. The United States SailGP Team delivered a hometown win only to crash with Italy and Brazil at the starting line of race three. While the US and Italian teams were issued penalties for causing serious damage, all three boats were unable to compete further.
Then it was on to a gripping finale, where Australia, Great Britain, and Canada went at it. While Emirates GBR pulled ahead, it was the Bonds Flying Roos of Australia pulling a kangaroo out of a hat to cross the line in first, securing their third overall win in a row.
Sailing for All
Even for the US fans who undoubtedly were disappointed after their home team’s strong start, the action and spectacle on New York Harbor never disappoint. With so much excitement building for the World Cup, it was nice to blow off a little steam with some high-speed sailing.
Want to know more about the New York Sail Grand Prix? Check out our other guides here! Or, access our SailGP hub for guides and tickets for any race.
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