eSailGP is back for a second season

2 April 2021

Building on the success of the inaugural season, which saw more than 146,000 unique players take part across 55,783 individual races and totaled 753,000 views on social platforms, SailGP has launched the 2021 eSailGP Championship. Once again, the eSailing competition will allow fans to pilot one of the most innovative race boats in the world in a virtual environment on new courses. The winner will win an all-inclusive package to a SailGP event in 2022 and a place in the 2021 eSailing World Championship Final.

The championship will feature six qualification events during the first half of the season in partnership with World Sailing and Virtual Regatta, with a spot in the eSailGP Grand Final on October 15 up for grabs for the winners, which will see the two eSailors with the highest points after three fleet races face-off in a single winner-takes-all match race. Two wildcards will also be granted a female player and a youth player selected by a panel of judges. This move is in line with SailGP’s immediate focus on the advancement of gender equity and its program to fast-track the training and development of female athletes for participation in SailGP.

"As an organization, we strive to be at the forefront of innovation and we aim to make our sport as accessible and inclusive as possible. Our revamped eSailGP championship is an opportunity for fans to engage with SailGP in a new way, while introducing a new audience of gamers to the sport and diversifying our fan base. We’ve seen there is a big appetite for this type of gaming, particularly over the last year with many live sports fans and athletes turning to eSports in lieu of real-life action and we’re excited to use this platform to introduce more people to our sport”, said SailGP Head of Content Jose Garnes.
The first event of the season kicks off with the Bermuda eSailGP, April 17-18.