40 national teams, the 2016 Olympics sailing area, a host of Olympic medallists competing, and the home nation team led by the legendary Robert Scheidt. The scene is set for the SSL Gold Cup 2026 - the ‘Copa do Mundo da Vela’.
With the Race Village at AXIA Marina da Glória and the backdrop of Rio’s city to the west and the iconic Sugarloaf Mountain to the south, marking the entrance of Guanabara Bay with the mighty South Atlantic ocean beyond, there are few settings in the world that can rival the beauty of this natural sailing arena.
The unique SSL Gold Cup format sees four teams racing each other in Rounds, with the higher seeded teams entering later in the competition. All the way until the end of the Quarterfinals there will be 16 teams competing in four Groups, with the top two in each Group progressing. Every day there are stories to tell as the racing unfolds, and the final day of each Round sees double points awarded, keeping the result wide open and the drama continues until the final leg of the final race.
Each team competes in the identical SSL 47 yachts, powerful and fast out-and-out racing machines which require perfect crewwork to get the best out of them. It is this one design aspect that ensures it is the sailors who make the difference as to who wins, not a design team. The SSL Gold Cup is democratising sailing, allowing smaller nations to take on the established countries and truly bringing the team nature of the sport to the world.
An integral part of the SSL Gold Cup is the team jerseys. Unique designs for each nation, unifying each team with their own visual identity. Each yacht is then emblazoned with the national flag on the stern and the country name on the boom. It has never been easier to find your team on the water.
The SSL broadcast team will be bringing you comprehensive coverage on the water, with livestream coverage on our @Starsailors YouTube channel, clips and updates from on the water and ashore on social media, and stunning photography together with detailed reporting and insights on our website and distributed to the media.
Ahead of the main event are the Pan-American Qualifiers, where Uruguay, Venezuela, Cuba, Bermuda, Antigua, Mexico, Puerto Rico and El Salvador will be battling for the final three places in the finals between 12th and 15th November.
In between the 1/32 and 1/16 Finals on 24th & 25th November is the SSL Snipe Challenge, an invitation regatta for Open and Women’s fleets which will see the top five teams from the recent Snipe World Championship compete, as well as several past World Champions and Olympians, all racing in their national jerseys.
The racing format will see qualifying on the first day, which sees the top ranked sailors progress directly to the final and the second placed crews advancing to the semifinal, while those ranked third to tenth will battle it out for a place in the semifinal, and then the four boat winner-takes-all single race final.
As part of the Sailing Athletes Foundation’s mission to promote sailing globally, ten new Lemão Snipes will be launched in collaboration with CBVela. The Snipe class dinghy has a unique place in Brazilian sailing, and all ten sailors in SSL Gold Cup Team Brasil are Snipe sailors. Read more here.
The atmosphere on Lake Neuchâtel earlier in the year was electric for the African, Oceanian and European Qualifiers, but with the final being so close, the action will be dazzling.
In total 65 countries will take part in this year’s edition, with the national ranking position and qualifiers deciding the 40 who have earned their ticket to the Rio finals.
Brazilian team captain and double Olympic gold medallist Robert Scheidt reinforced how important the SSL Gold Cup is for his country and the sport of sailing, “It’s a fantastic event that will bring together some of the biggest names in sailing to crown the best team in the world in Guanabara Bay. I would like to thank Eduardo Cavaliere and Sports Secretary Bruno Ramos for their support of such an important competition for the sport and for Rio de Janeiro. We want to leave a legacy for Brazilian sport and for the city, and we invite everyone to come and be part of this celebration at Marina da Glória.”
Want to find out more about the teams who have qualified for the SSL Gold Cup 2026 Finals?
Head to https://sslgoldcup.worldofsailors.com/ where each and every team has been profiled in detail.
Key Dates:
- 1/32 Finals - 19-22 November
- SSL Snipe Challenge - 24-25 November
- 1/16 Finals - 26-29 November
- 1/8 Finals - 2-5 December
- Quarterfinals - 7-10 December
- Semifinals - 12th December
- Final - 13 December
