SailGP 2026, everything changes: the first real “sail market” is born. And Italy chooses to change helmsman
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An unprecedented breakthrough, SailGP has announced a package of changes that could mark a turning point in professional sailing. For the 2026 season, the league is introducing an official system for managing athlete contracts, transfers and loans-something that introduces a kind of “market sail” that resembles how other professional leagues operate.
The other change concerns James Spithill’s Italian team, which is definitely changing course. The helmsman of the RedBull Italy team will not be Ruggero Tita – the two-time Olympic gold medalist Nacra 17 phenom-but New Zealander Phil Robertson, joined on strategy by Italian 49er Olympian Jana Germani.
Why is it a revolution?
Until now, teams built their teams season by season, within fairly strict nationality rules. Now the paradigm is changing: contracts will be long-term , market windows arrive within which teams can “trade” athletes as if it were a sail market. A model that aims to bring order, transparency and, most importantly, the ability to plan for the long term.
It is going to introduce for the first time a true “market” scenario in sailing as well: the transfer of an athlete under contract will have to find the agreement of both teams participating in the exchange on the basis of an economic quota, and there will of course also have to be the approval of the athlete himself. Long-term contracts will thus take on an economic value, which can also give rise to multimillion-dollar exchanges, or loan periods.
Only athletes who, based on certain criteria, will be entered into an official league registry may participate in SailGP.
It is a step that brings SailGP closer to the major professional sports championships while maintaining its identity.
Italy changes helmsman: Phil Robertson arrives
Inside this new context comes some unsettling news in the Red Bull Italy SailGP Team: in 2026 Phil Robertson will be the new helmsman. An experienced name, who knows the dynamics of the circuit well having already been at the helm of the Canadian team, and brings an important dose of leadership on the water.
Alongside him, in the role of strategist, will rise Jana Germani, one of the brightest talents of Italian sailing, with important results at world level in 49er.
What about the current protagonists? Ruggero Tita and Maelle Frascari are not leaving the project: they remain as reserves of the highest level, a precise technical choice that emphasizes their value and their role in the team’s journey.
And this is just the beginning….
With the newly introduced rules, the movement is bound to grow: we may see more changes in crews, new entries and strategic choices in the coming months that will reshape the circuit landscape.
Stay tuned: the teams’ next moves could come much sooner than expected.
We recommend the reel on the issue: (link) https://www.instagram.com/reel/DRNVHrIghHV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA==
And the double interview of Jimmy Spithill (team CEO) and Ruggero Tita during the opening of the RedBull sailing Academy in Monfalcone https://youtu.be/cvaQC5Vm0Go?si=4FFIe3Z9mbenfVc3
Rebecca Geiger
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