Britain may be missing from America's Cup

By JONATHAN BROWN

The America's Cup, the world's oldest international sporting event, is about to sail into European waters for the first time since it was lost to the New World in 1851.

But the 32nd gathering of the world's rich and powerful, who for 150 years have been obsessed sometimes to the point of penury with winning it, could be about to take place without Britain.

The British team, GBR Challenge Americas Cup, has just three weeks to finalise a deal to be ready in time to compete in Valencia in 2007.

At present the computer tycoon Peter Harrison has bankrolled the challenge to the tune of £25m. But he says he will reluctantly pull out unless corporate sponsors can come up with a further £20m to see his dream through.

Gordon Moultrie, the team's principle, is in the process of preparing the boat and its crew. But as for the prospect of Britain not entering? "I just can't go there," he said yesterday.

"Along with the Olympics and Formula One this is going to be among the top four most important global sporting events of the next five years."

The problem has been convincing big companies to sign up for what has become, in a rapidly commercialising sport, an all-year-round rather than once-every-four-year commitment.

A deal is said to be close but it has been stalled at boardroom level for 12 months. According to some at Skandia Cowes Week this week, one of the problems has been in finding a big name skipper for GBR.

While sailing is one of the few real gold medal prospects at Athens, the UK's leading yachtsmen have already signed for foreign teams. Ben Ainslie will skipper Team New Zealand, while Iain Percy has joined the Italians.

Ellen MacArthur, perhaps the biggest name in the sport, is a long-distance specialist rather than team racer.

The dearth of internationally recognisable faces has for long deterred television from embracing the sport while the casual viewer is often left bemused by sailing jargon and tactics.

But organisers say that yachting, unlike football and Formula One, is one of the few growth areas left in international sport.

To get the sponsors on board, and their logos on camera, it is vital that the event should be televised. A deal to distribute pictures from Valencia has already been signed with Trans World International.

Nothing however is settled with national stations, although talks are said to well advanced. Unlike in New Zealand when races took place in the middle of the night UK-time, this time they will occur in European prime time.

Other hopes are pinned on the new Virtual Spectator graphics which will explain the intricacies of sailing and perhaps do for the sport what technology has done for cricket. But still the sponsors teeter.

Leslie Ryan, GBR marketing manager, concedes that the sport has suffered an image problem, but insists this is changing.

"It has been seen as elitist, but in sponsorship terms this can be a positive thing as it appeals to decision makers."

As a result luxury brands such as Land Rover and Burberry have been courted by the well-developed business teams. The big financial institutions and technology companies are also being wooed, with directors offered the chance to indulge in a little on-board corporate hospitality.

They will also get to actually sail with the boat in live competition, the so-called 17th crew option.

There is little question that the Cup is big business, it boosted New Zealand's GNP by two points, while in Valencia, 1.5bn euros has been earmarked for infrastructure improvements.

Among these is the Docklands-style regeneration of the city's old port. Marcus Hutchinson of America's Cup management says bringing it to Europe puts the event within a two-hour flight of 300m affluent consumers - unique anywhere in the world.

But the question remains, can yachting transcend its elitist image to attract a truly global and popular audience.

According to Hutchinson, the answer is yes.

"Imagine it like this. The America's Cup is a game of chess, strategic and mentally challenging. It is being played by rugby players, big, tough strong guys in Formula 1 cars - these boats are highly sophisticated. Put these three together and there are very few sports which can compete."

- INDEPENDENT