SailGP 101: The Evolution Of The F50
How did the F50 catamaran sailed by the U.S. SailGP Team evolve to become such a high-tech piece of engineering?
Published 04/23/2025
Forget everything you thought you knew about sailing. When it comes to SailGP, the chances are it simply isn’t applicable.
We’re talking about a coming together of science and speed to create a class of boat that has continually got quicker with innovation - all while being powered by Mother Nature - to exceed speeds of more than 100km/h. So strap in for a whistle-stop history of the evolution of the F50.
Like many of the best inventions, the F50 catamarans used by the SailGP fleet borrowed something from what had gone before. In this instance, their historical ancestors are the AC50s used during the 2017 America’s Cup in Bermuda. Three of these were acquired by SailGP and modified for the inaugural season of the competition in 2019, with a further three built from scratch.
The emphasis was placed upon a new control system and modular wing sails, allowing for faster, more stable and flatter flight. Charged with meeting that brief were Core Builders Composites based in New Zealand, with the work taking almost 135,000 hours to complete ahead of Season One. Measuring 15m in length and with a beam of 8.8m, these carbon fiber structures are designed for lightness and strength. The central pod and beam structure of the AC50 remained largely intact but the hulls were completely stripped back to be fitted with SailGP’s tech and control systems.
Those modular wingsails, that look like something you’d see on an airplane, come in three sizes: 18m, 24m and 29m, and are used according to the varying wind conditions. The more wind, the smaller the wing needs to be. Less wind calls for a bigger wing.
The F50s also included hydraulic and electrical control systems - unlike their predecessors - with the majority of in-flight adjustments being made using electric motors and lithium-ion batteries. This enables more precise control of the foils, which we’ll come onto shortly.
There is also a network of 125 sensors on each vessel that process more than 35,000 data points per second, collating real-time information on the boat’s performance and environmental conditions that the crew and coaches can tap into back on the shore. That data is democratized, with each team having full access to each other’s data after races, to help level the playing field and ensure tightly contested races that are decided on the water.
Ahead of Season Five, another AC50 - this time used by Team New Zealand at the 35th America’s Cup - was acquired by SailGP to complete the 12-team fleet. More than 45 people worked on that process, with the vessel ready for the second event in Auckland in January. It was a mammoth undertaking, with the wingsail being constructed in the UK and shipped down under to meet its platform for the first time!
Underneath the hulls, continual innovation resulted in the introduction of the brand-new T-Foils system for Season Five. Following extensive testing over the last 18 months - with teams trialling the new foils in training - they debuted in Auckland. The new foils went through further testing at the Season Four Grand Final in San Francisco, where Canada set a new speed record of 101.98km/h in winds of 32km/h.
Described by SailGP co-founder Russell Coutts as ‘game-changers for the sport’, the change from L-Foils to T-Foils gave teams ‘more control at high speed and better performance,’ according to Coutts. Another benefit is in safety – they are less likely to suffer damage when put under high negative loads during nosedives. The outer tips of the T-Foils, which point away from the hulls come with sacrificial tips. In the event of a high impact collision, they’ll simply break off, meaning they pose no threat to other teams in those rare instances. With greater control, the chances of collision have been reduced.
Read: Who Are The Shore Team & What Do They Do?
More efficient in the water, the new T-Foils are titanium, rather than carbon fiber, and are thinner in shape as a result. As a result, teams are able to cavitate later to push speeds higher and accelerate quicker. Cavitation refers to water around the foils vaporizing due to high pressure, creating air bubbles. In doing so, it reduces the foil’s ability to lift the boat and generate drag, slowing it down.
Excitingly, the F50 remains open to further development, with designers and engineers working on further increasing speed and safety across the fleet. Ideas and designs will be tested and implemented on each boat at the same time, ensuring no team has the advantage over anyone else.
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