Ainslie Signs New Cup Sponsor

Billionaire’s company hits the fast-forward button for British team

- Elaine Bunting

Anglo-Swiss chemicals and manufacturing company Ineos will fully fund Ben Ainslie’s America’s Cup team in what is the biggest – and fastest – sponsorship investment in British sailing. The £110m deal, aimed at winning back the Cup for the first time in 167 years, was signed a mere four weeks after Ineos founder, chairman and majority shareholder, Jim Ratcliffe, met Ainslie in a pub and chatted over a beer.

The company will back Ainslie’s BAR team through to the America’s Cup in New Zealand in 2021, replacing Jaguar Land Rover. The scale of the deal means Ainslie will not have to find other backers. It will allow his team to build and test two boats for the new AC75 rule (see page 18) and, crucially, allow Ainslie to focus on performance decisions.

Fast decisions

The speed of the agreement with Ineos has been vital to give Ainslie’s team sufficient development time, but it also says a great deal about the decisive role of Ratcliffe, who intends to be very involved throughout the campaign.