Article by Cup Insider
Shockwaves are reverberating around the America’s Cup community after the announcement today by INEOS – two time backer of Sir Ben Ainslie’s British America’s Cup challenges – that the company has parted ways with the four time Olympic champion and will be mounting a challenge for the 38th America’s Cup challenge without him.
The news broke today in a statement on the INEOS corporate website that confirmed the company would ‘enter a challenge for the 38th America’s Cup under the team name INEOS Britannia after parting ways with Sir Ben Ainslie.’
The statement went on to say that the split came after ‘INEOS Britannia and Sir Ben could not find agreement on terms to move forward following the conclusion of the 37th America’s Cup in Barcelona’.
According to the statement INEOS Britannia’s chief operating officer Dave Endean has been appointed CEO of the team which will ‘continue to leverage the design and technology expertise of the Mercedes F1 Team under the guidance of Technical Director, James Allison’.
INEOS chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe is quoted as saying: “I am enormously proud of what we achieved in Barcelona in developing a British boat that was truly competitive for the first time in decades. It set new benchmarks for British sailing, including winning the Louis Vuitton Cup for the first time, and taking races off the Defender in the finals for the first time in 90 years. We will now build upon this for the 38th America’s Cup through the INEOS challenge and already have 100 scientists and engineers working on the design of our AC38 yacht.”
Rumours had been rife that relations had soured between Ainslie and Ratcliffe after the conclusion of AC37 in Barcelona, Spain last October when INEOS Britannia made history by becoming the first British challenger in 60 years to make it to the America’s Cup Match. Ainslie’s crew were beaten solidly in the final series by the two-time defenders Emirates Team New Zealand – losing 7-2.
Immediately after the conclusion of racing in Barcelona the British team confirmed it had been accepted by the Kiwis as the AC38 Challenger of Record – a status which the team held for last Cup and which brings with it certain perceived benefits, such as theoretical input into the format and rules of the competition.
Ratcliffe is one of Britain’s most successful businessmen and through INEOS owns the INEOS Grenadiers cycling team, FC Lausanne-Sport football club, and a controlling share in the British club Manchester United.
Although rumours of a worsening in the relationship between he and Ainslie were rife, today’s news will have surprised many in the sailing world. It also leaves a multitude of questions unanswered, not least of all who will Ratcliffe turn to as skipper of his team, and what does the AC future hold for Ainslie – the world’s most successful Olympic sailor.
Details of the format and venue for the 38th America’s Cup are yet to be announced by Emirates Team New Zealand, with June of this year being the expected deadline for confirmation of the venue.
© 2025 Justin Chisholm – For the full article by Cup Insider please click HERE.
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