A schooner beat fifteen Royal Yacht Squadron boats round the Isle of Wight on 22 August 1851 (1851)
The trophy, then the RYS £100 Cup, was renamed after the winning yacht
General knowledge · Sport
The America's Cup
First won 1851
Sport — the oldest international trophy in sport
The oldest international trophy in sport, won in 1851 when the schooner America beat a fleet of Royal Yacht Squadron yachts in a race round the Isle of Wight and carried off what was then called the £100 Cup. Its owners gave it to the New York Yacht Club in 1857 under a Deed of Gift making it a perpetual challenge trophy, and the club then held it for 132 years and 24 defences, the longest winning streak in sport, until Australia II and her winged keel took it in 1983. The holder, Emirates Team New Zealand, defends it at Naples in 2027.
How to spot them
- ▸A silver ewer with no bottom, nicknamed the Auld Mug
- ▸A race round the Isle of Wight in 1851, and a trophy named after the winning boat
- ▸The Deed of Gift of 1857; challenger and defender, not a fleet race
- ▸The winged keel; the 8–1 comeback; foiling catamarans and then monohulls
Key facts
Given to the New York Yacht Club in 1857 as a perpetual challenge trophy between nations (1857)
The Deed of Gift still governs the competition, and has been fought over in court more than once
One club held it for 132 years and 24 successful defences, the longest winning streak in sport
The New York Yacht Club, from 1857 to 1983
A winged keel, kept under wraps in the boatshed, took it away from the Americans for the first time (1983)
Australia II, skippered by John Bertrand for Alan Bond's syndicate, beat Dennis Conner's Liberty 4–3
Oracle Team USA came from 8–1 down to win nine races in a row on San Francisco Bay (2013)
One of the greatest comebacks in any sport, against Emirates Team New Zealand
Emirates Team New Zealand beat INEOS Britannia 7–2 at Barcelona for a third successive win (2024)
Britain's first appearance in the match itself since 1964
The 38th match will be sailed at Naples in July 2027 (2027)
The defender chose an Italian venue for the first time
Quick-fire facts
- •The schooner America won the trophy on 22 August 1851 in a race round the Isle of Wight against fifteen Royal Yacht Squadron yachts
- •The trophy was originally the RYS £100 Cup; it was renamed after the winning yacht
- •It is a bottomless silver ewer, affectionately known as the Auld Mug
- •The Deed of Gift of 1857 made it a perpetual challenge trophy for 'friendly competition between foreign countries'
- •The New York Yacht Club held it for 132 years and 24 defences, the longest winning streak in the history of sport
- •Australia II, with her secret winged keel, ended that run in 1983, beating Dennis Conner's Liberty 4–3
- •Team New Zealand won it in 1995 with Black Magic and have since become the dominant force
- •Oracle Team USA came back from 8–1 down to beat New Zealand 9–8 in 2013
- •Emirates Team New Zealand beat INEOS Britannia 7–2 at Barcelona in 2024, their third win running
- •The 38th match is scheduled for Naples, Italy, in July 2027
Drill it — 8 cards
1 / 8new card
Sources
- America's Cup Event Authority — America's Cup history and results
- Emirates Team New Zealand — Italy to host the Louis Vuitton 38th America's Cup in Naples in 2027