The partnership, which will be described as ‘TEAMORIGIN racing with Jaguar’ comes under the umbrella of the Jaguar Academy of Sport, which aims to recognise, celebrate and inspire the very best of British sporting talent and success.

The deal helps Jaguar strengthen its environmental credentials, not only through the associations of a wind-powered sport, but also through signing up to TEAMORIGIN’s ‘Race for Change’ which compels partners of the team to adhere to strict environmental goals monitored by the Carbon Trust.

Sir Keith Mills, Team Principal, TEAMORIGIN, commented:

“We are absolutely delighted to welcome Jaguar as our partner. There is a superb fit and alignment of purpose between TEAMORIGIN and Jaguar. Jaguar is clearly one of the most revered and iconic British brands and, just as Jaguar is now taking on and beating the best in the automotive world, so our mission is to take on and beat the best in the world on the water. The fit is further enhanced through our shared commitment to improve our environmental performance.”

Geoff Cousins, Managing Director, Jaguar UK commented:

“To partner with TEAMORIGIN is a fantastic opportunity for Jaguar. We are looking forward to the first appearance this summer at the 1851 Cup event, an exciting competition, which will see Britain’s best sailing talent compete against the current holders of The America’s Cup. It’s a mouth-watering prospect and one we are proud to support. This is a serious British endeavour, which fits perfectly with the recently launched Jaguar Academy of Sport, which is all about investing in the future of British Sporting talent.”

TEAMORIGIN’s newly branded livery will appear during Cowes Week and will feature striking Jaguar branding on both the hull and sails. The spinnaker will feature a Jaguar leaper in Union Jack Motif, the symbol of the Jaguar Academy of Sport.

Ben Ainslie, Skipper and Helmsman of TEAMORIGIN,commented:

“TEAMORIGIN’s goal is to win the America’s Cup for Great Britain, to achieve this we need to engage the support of like minded partners. In Jaguar, we can see great synergies where they share our passion for sport and competition at the highest level.”

More Automotive Sailing Sponsorship News…

Nevertheless, the project to make the next America’s Cup a televisual feast has begun and sceptics are hopeful that something good will come out of the investment. Popular sailing blog, Valencia Sailing said:

If this is not a genuine, open and open-minded attempt at making the America’s Cup and sailing much more accessible to the media then I’ll be damned! As you’ll see in the photos there are plenty of cameras, cameramen and photographers, some of them in the most unusual places. Some of the ideas will certainly turn out to be useless, impractical or even stupid. However, I’m sure that some others will give us great footage. Unless you try all of them, you’ll never know if they work or not.

16 cameras captured over four hours of sailing in a combined 60 hours of video as Russell Coutts and James Spithill of BMW ORACLE Racing tested two RC44 monohulls side by side in a series of close-proximity maneuvers.

Three onboard cameramen (two on one boat) augmented the fixed and remote control cameras, and upwards of 25 microphones, including surround-sound microphones, captured the crews’ voices and ambient noise.

Russell Coutts said:

“I thought we certainly achieved what we set out at the beginning of the day, which was to get baseline viewing angles for comparison later in the weekend when we try to alter the racecourse and carry out similar exercises in X40 multihulls. “This evaluation process is all about testing new ideas, and we did that.”

Filming the action is one thing, but there is also a sense that the rules might have to be changed to force sailors to break habits. The official statement from yesterday’s sailing gives some clues to some of the ideas that organisers have for more exciting sailing:

The action became intense when the start box was limited to five boatlengths in width and depth. Required to stay inside the box, the two crews circled around each other for three minutes before breaking off to head to the start line.

The aim is to have the footage available to view on the blog of the official America’s Cup web site so that the public can comment, but even with the technological grunt of ORACLE behind the project, getting 60 hours of Video onto the internet is a challenge. The HD footage is still being ‘ingested’.

More America’s Cup News…

Since the Golden Gate Yacht Club won the right to defend the cup in February, the City has been preparing a proposal to host the event utilizing assets along the southern waterfront, and seeking early support from key local stakeholders. The announcement allows the City to leverage national resources and make this a coast-to-coast campaign.

Mayor Newsom said:

“The San Francisco Bay Area is blessed with physical assets that are unmatched anywhere in the world. This announcement allows us to leverage resources throughout the country to ensure that 34th America’s Cup is defended in America.”

San Francisco Bay does form a natural amphitheatre - unlike some previous cups, where racing was held far offshore and viewable only by spectators in boats. San Francisco has a compelling case that from the public shoreline, including Marina Green, Crissy Field, to the Marin headlands, Angel Island, Alcatraz and Fisherman’s Wharf, to its skyscrapers, the viewing platforms are unlimited. This combined with the City’s existing hotel, restaurant and cultural infrastructure, makes San Francisco the world class city it is and an ideal host for the America’s Cup.

Hosting major events is sometimes a game where the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. Once a city has built the physical and social infrastructure to host a major event, it can leverage those assets to attract more. San Francisco has extensive recent experience in hosting major international sporting events, including the 2008 Beijing Olympic Torch Relay, Major League Baseball All Star Game, PGA Tour President’s Cup, and the AMGEN Tour of California.

The Bay Area is also famously home to some of America’s and the World’s most innovative and successful technology companies. This helps to support Larry Ellison’s vision for incorporation of new technologies and media into the America’s Cup.

To advance the City’s campaign the Mayor has commissioned an economic impact study that will be released next week that will illustrate the significant financial benefits to the local, state and federal economies should San Francisco secure the host city rights. The Mayor is also forming a national America’s Cup Organizing Committee (ACOC) to marshal the private and corporate support necessary to win the campaign.

Additionally, the City has already secured significant local support including resolutions, adopted unanimously from: the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the Port Commission, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission, and the Recreation and Parks Commission, as well as letters of support from the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, Water Emergency Transportation Agency, San Francisco Bar Pilots Association, Port of Oakland, the San Francisco Convention and Visitor’s Bureau, and San Francisco Airport, among others.

The City and its partners are eager to work with Golden Gate Yacht Club and the BMW ORACLE Racing team to finalize the proposed racing facilities on the land and water. Working with the State and federal governments the City will secure the necessary approvals and commitments to meet the team’s stated deadline of selecting the 34th America’s Cup venue by the end of 2010.

More America’s Cup News…

A statement issued by BMW ORACLE today says:

San Francisco has put forward a strong, well rounded venue proposal, and is now the only city in the USA under consideration to host the 34th America’s Cup match.

The announcement gives San Francisco an added level of security which will enable it to petition for investment from state and national sources. Despite being home to some of the country’s most wealthy corporations the city will seek public funds to build the infrastructure required for the event.

San Francisco’s Mayor Gavin Newsom said:

“We are very honored to lead a national effort to host the 34th America’s Cup. Larry Ellison has a transformative vision for hosting the Cup on San Francisco Bay, and we are prepared to leverage the nation’s support to make this a coast-to-coast campaign and to realize that vision.”

San Francisco beat other US candidate cities including Newport Rhode Island, San Diego and Long Beach. While Newport had history on its side, San Francisco seems to fit better with the ‘New Deal’ America’s Cup that BMW ORACLE are envisioning. San Francisco also has the ability to bring sailing to the city. Russell Coutts said:

“Our team has said from the outset that San Francisco and the Bay Area have the potential to provide a superb stage on which to host a memorable America’s Cup. Larry Ellison, has called the Bay ‘a fantastic natural amphitheatre’.”

It is hard to imagine a US based team not staging the America’s Cup in home waters. While Swiss based Alinghi were forced to hold the event outside of Switzerland due to the rules of the Deed of Gift, an American defender would have a hard job of selling a non-American venue to the US public. Were BMW ORACLE to choose a European venue – the long term impact on the sport of sailing in the USA would be significant.

Nevertheless, some European governments are more aggressive than the US when it comes to allocating public funds and doing deals to attract major sporting events like the America’s Cup. If a European city comes up with a deal like the one that lured the Volvo Ocean Race to Alicante, then the Defender will have to choose between pleasing the US public and money. Proposals from European cities are more likely to be used as leverage with San Francisco to come up with a better deal.

More America’s Cup News…

The 1851 Cup will recreate an historic race around the Isle of Wight which was won by the yacht ‘America’ and gave rise to the America’s Cup. Racing will be held as close to West Cowes as possible to give spectators a close-up view. On Thursday 5th of August, TEAMORIGIN and BMW ORACLE will race clockwise around the Island, replicating the direction sailed in 1851.

On the 3rd, 4th of August, 3 match races will be held each day. Another ‘Round the Island’ Race will take place on the 6th of August.

The publicity for the event and the ‘cut and paste’ press say:

The two hottest match racing skippers in the world, TEAMORIGIN’s Ben Ainslie, and BMW ORACLE Racing’s James Spithill, will lead their teams contesting the 1851 Cup. Britain’s TEAMORIGIN will be the be first potential challenger for the next America’s Cup to race head-to-head with BMW ORACLE Racing, winners of the 33rd America’s Cup.

Now ‘hottest’ is a subjective term – perhaps the PR folk are talking about Ben’s fashion shoots for Henri Lloyd or some ‘hot or not’ competition for match-racing skippers that we don’t know about. In the other races where potential challengers for the next America’s Cup race head-to-head with BMW ORACLE, the  Louis Vuitton Trophy, Ainslie and Spithill have not been the pick of the bunch. In the last event BMW ORACLE finished 9th out of 10 and TEAMORIGIN came in 7th. According to ISAF, in the official World Match Racing rankings, Ainslie is 3rd after Adam Minoprio and Torvar Mirsky and James Spithill is not in the top 25.

Nevertheless, Australian James Spithill the youngest-ever America’s Cup skipper, will go into battle against Great Britain’s Ben Ainslie, aged 33, Skipper and Helmsman of TEAMORIGIN, four times Olympic medallist with 3 golds and 1 silver. Ainslie said:

“This will be an incredible event which I am sure will capture the imagination of sports fans across the UK. We relish the idea of taking on the Defenders in our home waters. We have a busy season in 2010 and The 1851 Cup is one that we are all particularly looking forward to.”

James Spithill, Skipper of BMW ORACLE Racing added:

“Ben’s a mate and fantastic sailor. Having said that, we’re really looking forward to taking the fight to him and his guys. For our team, this is a key stepping stone from having been victorious challengers in February when we beat Alinghi, to becoming a unit that has to defend the 34th America’s Cup.”

More America’s Cup News Here…

Haxthausen says:

Last February, the America’s Cup trophy returned to the U.S. for the first time in 15 years. …the 33rd America’s Cup was a commercial failure by most measures. It also featured a car maker as key sponsor: BMW.

The winning syndicate, BMW Oracle headed by Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, is estimated to have spent some $200 million on the project. While most of that money appears to have come from Ellison’s own pockets, BMW was also a key stakeholder.

The idea of a car brand sponsoring sailing activities seems counterintuitive. And in the case of BMW, the yacht sponsorship activities seem especially odd in the context of BMW’s dropping of its Formula One sponsorship activities. Formula One was an arguably closer fit with the brand, but it was also a much higher ticket item for BMW, estimated at above $300 million annually.

The idea of a car brand sponsoring sailing is as counter-intuitive as an insurance company sponsoring a soccer team or an energy drink sponsoring a Formula 1 car. It makes no difference what you are selling, it is about positioning, association and relevance to your audience.

Haxthausen reasons for BMW’s involvement in the America’s Cup campaign, leaving aside their sponsorship of sailing in Europe, are:

The 2010 America’s Cup was all about technological innovation and speed performance, key elements for the brand producing the “ultimate driving machine.” BMW has cited the opportunities for leveraging America’s Cup innovations in its cars as a key driver of its involvement.

BMW targets an affluent, well-educated, active group of potential customers, globally. This target not only has an interest in cars and motorcycles, but it also follows golf and sailing; as a result, BMW is involved in sponsorship activities covering all four sports categories.

BMW, a prestigious brand, seeks affiliations with prestigious events. The America’s Cup, which claims to be the oldest active trophy in international sports, still has significant prestige, despite recent controversies.

Sailing is green, and all car companies, including BMW, seek a green image.

The last one is perhaps a little bit debatable. Sailing is powered by the wind, but spending $200 million on a boat that will be sailed 3 times and never used again is hardly an endorsement for efficient use of resources or sustainability.

Nevertheless, BMW have shown a long term commitment to the project and have probably benefited, not just from media value, but significant research developments and IP that could generate direct revenue against the investment in the America’s Cup.

In the 2009 DARK BLUE BOOK, BMW ORACLE lists it’s services as including; “Carbon Construction – composite construction of components and parts”, something that a luxury auto-maker can contribute to and benefit from. Sometimes, sponsorship is not about media, it’s about business partnerships that are not visible to the consumer.

19 designers met in Valencia yesterday, at a meeting chaired by BMW ORACLE Racing’s design coordinator, Ian Burns. 10 nationalities were represented, with winning records in every level rating class from Quarter Tonners to TP52s as well as the Volvo Ocean Race, Jules Verne Trophy, classic races such as the Fastnet and Sydney-Hobart and, the America’s Cup.

Central to the deliberations was whether to develop a monohull or a multihull for the 34^th America’s Cup. The predominance of America’s Cup teams racing in monohull series like the Audi Med Cup and RC44 series suggest that teams have a preference for one hull, but nevertheless BMW ORACLE have asked for both multihull and monohull concept options.

Two different multihulls (20m and 25m LOA) were discussed as was one monohull (up to 27m LOA). The new concepts were conceived by eminent designers Bruce Nelson and Morelli/Melvin, creators of previous America’s Cup winning yachts. High performance is fundamental to all three concepts. The monohull proposal will give significantly faster speeds upwind and downwind compared to boats used in 2007.

Both Burns and Coutts are talking about ‘the fans’ – a group of stakeholders who were consistently ignored in the last edition of the cup. Burns said:

“The America’s Cup is the pinnacle of our sport, so the boats should be physically demanding to race well and produce fast, competitive racing to engage new fans.”

Coutts added:

“The teams want a new boat; the fans deserve one too.”

As outlined at the press conference in Rome, the requirements for all three concepts are:

• fast, dynamic and close racing
• high levels of athleticism required to race the boats to their optimum
• advanced, efficient and cost-effective technologies
• logistical efficiency to facilitate transport to a regular series of regattas
• distinctive to the America’s Cup
• versatility, enabling racing in any venue in winds from 5-35 knots

The America’s Cup is lucky that some in the media still remember 2007, because based on the TV debacle that was the most recent America’s Cup, most television companies would be quite justified in never showing the sport on TV again. Hours and hours of commentators filling while officials raised and lowered flags with names like AP and tried the patience of the most ardent fan. Now that BMW ORACLE have to shop the rights, they have realised that things have to change.

Coutts reiterated his points from the recent press conference:

“Delays and postponements kill interest. America’s Cup boats shouldn’t be the last to start racing and the first to quit whilst other classes are still racing. They also need to be designed from the outset to unleash the full potential of television.”

The World Sailing Teams Association has been asked if it would manage the rule drafting and publication of the new class rule will be no later than 30^th September.

More America’s Cup News. . .

Over the last few years, the team has competed regularly in the RC44 Championship, a combination of fleet racing and match racing in boats designed by and named after BMW ORACLE CEO Russell Coutts. Despite a brief appearance in the Extreme Sailing Series Europe, brought about by the multihull nature of the last America’s Cup, the team will focus on monohull racing in 2010.

The first even that will see BMW ORACLE back on the water is the RC 44 Austria Cup. The team will compete in two boats at the event which has become a real fixture of the Austrian sailing calendar.

Larry Ellison and Russell Coutts will be competing under the BMW ORACLE Racing banner, while the winning skipper of the 33rd America’s Cup team, James Spithill, will be at the helm of a boat currently named ‘Boat 17’. Crew from the BMW ORACLE Racing team will be sailing on both boats.

The team at PROFS have made the RC 44 Austria Cup a popular stop on the circuit, set amongst the Austrian Alps on Lake Traunsee. The beautiful mountain lake is surrounded by ‘postcard perfect’ vistas, but the weather can be unpredictable, offering up challenging conditions for racing. The idea is to use the lake as a showcase for a large sailing festival, bringing tourists from miles around to experience all the region has to offer. The presence of America’s Cup winning sailors is a great drawcard for the event.

Ten world-class teams are expected in Austria, including the early leader in the RC 44 Championship, Artemis. The regatta is from April 29th to May 4th.

Following the RC 44 Austria Cup, BMW ORACLE Racing will return to Cup style racing at the Louis Vuitton Trophy in La Maddalena, on the Italian coast of Sardinia, beginning on May 22.

Jimmy Spithill said:

“I’m really looking forward to getting back on the water and racing against the top teams again. Having had a look at the Louis Vuitton Trophy regatta in Auckland in February, I know we have a lot of work ahead of us to get our team competing at the highest level again. The RC 44 circuit and Louis Vuitton Trophy events are a great way for us to start that process.”

The team will continue to engage with fans via the social media platforms they enabled for the America’s Cup. In addition to the main team website at www.bmworacleracing.com, there is a team blog at http://bmworacleracingblog.blogspot.com, a YouTube page at http://www.youtube.com/bmworacleracingteam, and a Twitter feed at: http://twitter.com/bmworacle2010.

Now the eponymously named RC44 series is heading for America, the home of the BMW ORACLE team and the new home of the America’s Cup. The RC 44 Championship has announced plans to develop a North American circuit. An RC 44 will be displayed in Newport (RI) this spring, allowing potential owners to test-sail the boat. A North American Championship Tour could be launched as early as 2011.

While Larry Ellison told Fortune Magazine that the Louis Vuitton Trophy would make a good support series for the America’s Cup, others comments have hinted that a new AC class may look like a scaled up RC44 and so having stong recognition of the one-design would help allign the amateur and professional side of the sport which is such a hot topic in the states.

Dee Smith, a professional sailor and project manager involved in top level yacht racing events, has been named RC 44 agent for North America. He said:

“This is a great opportunity to start a very exciting new One Design Class here in North America. The RC 44 has proven to be a huge success in Europe and we feel there is a need for a boat that is both exciting to sail and cost effective to run here in the States. We already have many established teams looking to acquire an RC 44 and get this party going.”

Bertrand Favre, RC44 Class Manager says:

“The North American circuit will be adapted to the owners’ desires. Some characteristics of the Class are fundamental, such as the One Design aspect, the amateur owner driver and direct umpiring. However we are also open to new ideas regarding the format of racing. One thing is sure: thanks to the easy logistics of the Class, it will be possible to sail in great locations in the US, both on the East and West coast and even on lakes.”

For a country like the USA which supports the NFL, NBA, MBL and NASCAR, the creation of a national sailing series should be easy. The announcement that the RC44 Class will establish an American footprint pre-empts any attempts by the Extreme 40 class to create an entertainment based national sailing competition, though with the return of the America’s Cup to US shores, there should be room for both and more…

BMW ORACLE boss Larry Ellison gave an interview to ABC that touched on some of the issues that will define AC 34 including the venue and what kind of boats might be used.

The interview reveals that if the America’s Cup community agree, then the format of the next event might be skewed towards being more commercial, more spectator friendly and less traditional. Ellison says he will consult with sponsors on some of the decisions, which will include where the racing will take place.

Perhaps BMW ORACLE have media figures that we haven’t seen. Ellison says that young people want to see extreme racing and that a lot of people enjoyed watching the event in Valencia because of the radical nature of the boats. It’s not like fans were ever given a choice of what boats they wanted to watch, and a lot more people watched AC 32 than tuned into the monster trimarans. While most would argue that professional yacht racing needs to provide compelling products, the (non New York Court) jury is still out as to whether the America’s Cup is the right platform to deliver that product.

The interview also talks about budgets, with Ellison throwing out a number of $2-3-4 million for a campaign in AC34.

See the complete interview here….