Australia SailGP Team goes down under

Australia’s three-time SailGP champions have unveiled a new identity as well as two new co-owners – Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds – who join Driver and CEO Tom Slingsby in leading the freshly rebranded BONDS Flying Roos SailGP Team.

The league relinquishes ownership to Slingsby and the iconic actors, while the multi-year partnership with the Australian underwear company gives the team its first title partner.

Jackman and Reynolds, known to be good friends, shared how they’re “incredibly excited to set sail together in this new adventure. Hugh brings a deep love for and pride in his home country as well as being an avid fan of sailing. He will also be bringing his overly clingy emotional support human along for the ride. Apologies in advance to Australia. No comment on whether we’re writing this in our BONDS. No further questions.”

The BONDS Flying Roos SailGP Team will make their official debut under their new name and ownership at the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on June 7-8.

“This is an incredible milestone for us and for our sport, having global icons Hugh Jackman and Ryan Reynolds come on board as co-owners of our team,” said Slingsby. “They bring unmatched star power, a love for storytelling, and a sharp sense of humor that fits perfectly with our team. With BONDS joining as our Title Partner and the launch of the BONDS Flying Roos, we’re building something distinctly Australian; a team driven by spirit, resilience, and national pride.”

SailGP information – New York event – YouTube – Facebook

Season 5 Leaderboard (after 5 events)
1. Australia – Tom Slingsby, 39 points
2. Great Britain – Dylan Fletcher, 38 points
3. Spain – Diego Botin, 36 points
4. New Zealand – Peter Burling, 35 points
5. Canada – Giles Scott, 34 points
6. France – Quintin Delapierre, 28 points*
7. Switzerland – Sebastien Schneiter, 18 points
8. Italy – Ruggero Tita, 13 points
9. Denmark – Nicolai Sehested, 9 points**
10. Brazil – Martine Grael, 2 point**
11. United States – Taylor Canfield, 2 points**
12. Germany – Erik Heil, -1 points**
* France was awarded points for the first two events as their F50 was not available
**Teams receive season penalty points for incidents during practice or racing

Season 5 Schedule – 14 events *
2024
November 23-24 – Dubai, UAE

2025
January 18-19 – Auckland, New Zealand
February 8-9 – Sydney, Australia
March 15-16 – Los Angeles, USA
March 22-23 – San Francisco, USA
May 3-4 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
June 7-8 – New York City, USA
July 19-20 – Portsmouth, Great Britain
August 16-17 – Sassnitz, Germany
September 6-7 – Taranto, Italy
September 12-13 – Saint-Tropez, France
September 20-21 – Geneva, Switzerland
October 4-5 – Andalucía – Cádiz, Spain
November 7-8 – Middle East
November 29-30 – Grand Final – Abu Dhabi, UAE
* The season began with 14 events but Tranto was replaced with Saint-Tropez, while Rio and Middle East were cancelled though Rio may be rescheduled.

Format for Season 5:
• Teams compete in identical F50 catamarans.
• Each event runs across two days.
• Five qualifying fleet races of approximately 15 minutes may be scheduled for each regatta.
• The top three teams from qualifying advance to a final race to be crowned event champion and earn the largest share of the prize purse (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had $400,000.00 USD prize purse with winning team earning $200k at each event).
• The season ends with the Grand Final, which includes the Championship Final Race for the top three teams in the season standing with the winner claiming a monetary award (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had $2 million USD prize).
• The top team on points ahead of the three-boat Championship Final will get a monetary award (amount not confirmed; Season 4 had a $350,000.00 prize).
• The league currently maintains control ownership of the teams based in Denmark, New Zealand, and Spain, though it’s actively in the process of selling the Spanish team.

For competition documents, click here.

Established in 2018, SailGP seeks to be an annual, global sports league featuring fan-centric inshore racing among national teams in some of the iconic harbors around the globe.

Source: SailGP