The recently concluded America’s Cup has represented a revolution in the sport. The legacy of the America’s Cup on San Francisco Bay has brought the racing to the fans, and then delivered amazing 50 mph boats, exciting racing, ground-breaking television graphics, as well as the sports comeback story of the century.
34th America's Cup - ORACLE Team USA vs Emirates Team New Zealand, Race Day 15 © ACEA / PHOTO FRANCES KUPERMIT
“This regatta has changed sailing forever. More people watched the first race of this America’s Cup than all of the America’s Cups in history, so I think it’s a success,” said Larry Ellison, whose vision of high-speed, wing sail catamarans racing in the tight confines of San Francisco Bay was realized this month.
The contest for the oldest trophy in international sport was completely modernized with innovation and technology.
34th America's Cup - Final Match - Racing Day 15 © Gilles Martin-Raget
Investment in television graphics and production meant new fans could instantly recognize and understand what was happening on the water. The AC Liveline technology behind the graphics won an Emmy Award and changed the way the sport is viewed on television.
“I think about this regatta and what it means to sailing,” said Ellison. “I think it was absolutely spectacular. If a bunch of kids are inspired to go sail, I’m a happy guy.”
34th America's Cup - Final day 15, ORACLE Team USA vs Emirates Team New Zealand © Abner Kingman
Here are the numbers behind the event:
• 203 countries broadcast the America’s Cup on television
• America’s Cup broadcast in news bulletins globally 15,000 times
• Over 320,000 downloads of the America’s Cup app
• Over 1 million visitors to the official public sites in San Francisco at America’s Cup Park and America’s Cup Village. Hundreds of thousands more viewed the racing from the city front
• Nearly 10,000 hospitality guests
• Over 5 million unique visitors to the website of the Americas Cup in September and over 45-million page views during the Summer of Racing (July 1 to September 26)
• 24.8 million views of videos on YouTube
• Over 100 million minutes of videos viewed in the past month
• 575 accredited media, from 32 countries
• A 19 show America’s Cup Concert Series
• Over 25% of the population of New Zealand watched the racing broadcast live during the America’s Cup Finals
Day 15 of the Final Match at 34th America's Cup © Ricardo Pinto
What they’re saying:
New York Times
The Cup is the oldest major trophy in sport… Pushed into a postmodern place
SI.com
Larry Ellison and Russell Coutts got it right. The staid old America’s Cup can be an adrenalin rush
USA Today
America’s Cup: Do you believe in miracles?
Reuters
The epic battle over the past few days has been a major vindication of the vision of how to modernize the competition
The Times (London)
What has made this year’s America’s Cup truly breathtaking is the television coverage
CNN
A comeback for the ages
Jay Leno, The Tonight Show
The greatest comeback in sports history
Huffington Post
Amazing television? Check? Crowds on the waterfront? Check. Exciting racing? Check and double check
