GB1: Britain’s America’s Cup Team unveils new identity and confirms Dylan Fletcher as helm

Britain’s America’s Cup Team has unveiled in Naples its new identity, GB1, which will accompany the British challenge towards the 38th America’s Cup. The team, representing the Challenger of Record Royal Yacht Squadron Racing Ltd, has introduced a new name and visual language to mark the beginning of a new phase in its campaign.

GB1 is the new identity of Athena Racing, the team founded by Sir Ben Ainslie in 2014 and a competitor in the last three America’s Cup editions. The announcement was combined with the confirmation of Dylan Fletcher MBE as helm for AC38. An Olympic gold medallist and current SailGP Champion, Fletcher will contest his second America’s Cup after competing in the previous edition as co-helm alongside Sir Ben Ainslie. In 2024, he was part of the British team that won the Challenger Selection Series and reached the America’s Cup Match, the first British team to do so in 60 years.

Sir Ben Ainslie, Team Principal of GB1, highlighted that Fletcher’s appointment reflects both his work and his results on the water. Fletcher expressed his motivation to return to the America’s Cup with the British Challenger, noting that the experience of the previous campaign has strengthened the team’s determination.

The GB1 identity is based on visual elements that reference British tradition, drawing on the colours of the Union Jack and international maritime signal flags. The design language reflects speed, precision and technical performance, while the name adopts the concise and competitive vocabulary of high-level racing.

The launch took place during a meeting of the America’s Cup Partnership (ACP), which for the first time brought together the five founding teams: Emirates Team New Zealand, GB1, Luna Rossa, Tudor Team Alinghi and K-Challenge. The ACP represents a significant step in the history of the competition, introducing shared governance and a common commercial structure aimed at long-term stability and increased global engagement.

GB1 CEO Ian Walker described the Naples event as a key moment for collaboration among the teams, while noting that competition on the water will remain intense and that the Bay of Naples will provide a distinctive setting for AC38.

The event will also see the announcement of the America’s Cup Match dates, a central milestone for all challengers. It follows the confirmation that the first preliminary regatta of AC38 will take place in Cagliari from 21 to 24 May 2026, using AC40 race boats.

The British team’s commitment to youth development remains a core element of its programme. In Naples, Hannah Mills OBE, Team Principal of the Athena Pathway Programme and helm of the British Women’s America’s Cup Team, officially opened applications for the Youth Team. Mills underlined that AC38 will be the first edition in which women will race on every competing boat, marking an important step towards greater inclusion and continuity in high-performance sailing pathways.

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