SailGP's 2026 Season 6 calendar now pivots away from the southern hemisphere, with the league headed to Bermuda on May 9-10 for the first of three consecutive North American events after Australia's win in Rio de Janeiro reshaped the title race.
The F50 circuit that began in Perth in January has already produced four distinct winners across its four completed events — Great Britain in Perth, Australia in Auckland and Rio, the United States in Sydney, and a spread of podium finishers behind them. With nine events still to run, the path to the Abu Dhabi Grand Final on November 28-29 is still wide open.
The season format concentrates the championship's drama at the end of the year. Each of the 13 events awards $400,000 to the winning team, $260,000 to second and $140,000 to third, but the big payoff is the Grand Final: the top three teams on the season ladder race head-to-head for the championship, with the overall winner banking an additional $400,000.
For Australia, the Rio win could not have been better timed. Tom Slingsby's crew took the Season 6 lead with 35 points after finishes of 2-1-5-1, and the win snapped a perceived slide — the Flying Roos had won the first three SailGP titles but finished outside the event podium at their home regatta in Sydney earlier this season. "It doesn't make up for not winning their home event in Sydney," one TNT Sports commentator noted as Slingsby sealed Rio, "but this would be a huge win for them."
Great Britain's Dylan Fletcher, who had led the standings coming into Rio but dropped a 12th place, faces the steepest challenge of the North American leg. Fletcher's crew has historically performed well in breezier, more open courses, and Bermuda's Great Sound typically delivers exactly that.
The 13-team fleet will also welcome back New Zealand after Peter Burling's crew missed Rio with boat damage sustained in Sydney. With just two points on the board after four events, Burling — one of the sport's highest-profile helms — has a lot of ground to make up before Abu Dhabi.
After Bermuda, SailGP races at New York on May 30-31 and Halifax on June 20-21, before the European swing resumes at Portsmouth on July 25-26. The 11th event was earlier moved from Saint-Tropez to Geneva, a shift that adds a lake venue to a calendar otherwise dominated by coastal stadiums.
