Yacht Club Costa Smeralda: the 2026 regatta calendar

All the dates to mark on your calendar, from major comebacks to iconic events

A benchmark for international sailing, it hosts some of the most spectacular, sophisticated, and iconic sailing competitions in the Mediterranean, in 2026, the Yacht Club Costa Smeralda (YCCS) launches a packed calendar of events, including historic returns, legendary classes, and a constant focus on safeguarding the sea. The YCCS’s commitment to sustainability remains a central theme, including the traditional YCCS Clean Beach Day, organized in collaboration with the One Ocean Foundation on June 8th, marking World Oceans Day.

Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup

The 2026 season kicks off earlier than in the past, from April 24th to 26th, with the Cape 31 Med Round 1, bringing to Sardinia a high-performance one-design class that is increasingly sought-after in the Mediterranean. Following this, from May 15th to 17th, Vela & Golf returns, a classic formula that combines sport, lifestyle, and club spirit, while from May 21st to 23rd the Grand Soleil Cup, an event much loved by Italian boat builders, takes centre stage. Spring highlights will include the Giorgio Armani Superyacht Regatta, scheduled for May 26th to 30th. This regatta is dedicated to sailing yachts over 80 feet and multihulls of at least 50 feet, and has become one of the most recognizable events on the Porto Cervo calendar. But the real news for 2026 is the eagerly-awaited return of the Range Rover Sardinia Cup from May 31st to June 7th: a historic regatta, absent since 2012, considered one of the Club’s signature events. Five days of racing, including medium-long coastal races and buoy races.

From June 15th to 20th, Porto Cervo hosts the Rolex TP52 World Championship, the highlight of the 52 Super Series circuit. It is one of the most technically prestigious events of the year, bringing one of the most competitive keelboat fleets to Sardinia. Immediately afterward, the calendar continues with the Club’s most iconic competitions, with the Smeralda 888 Invitational from June 26th to 28th and the Coppa Europa Smeralda 888 from July 3rd to 5th, dedicated to the fleet designed specifically for Porto Cervo.

Vela & Golf

From July 29 to August 1, the YCCS Members Championship brings together members and boat owners in a competition with an almost private atmosphere. Crews who know one another, friendly rivalries, tight maneuvers on the water, and conversations that continue ashore, between Piazza Azzurra and the terraces overlooking the harbor. An intimate opening act, before the Mediterranean broadens the horizon.

From August 18 to 23, the Palermo–Porto Cervo–Monte Carlo race charts a course straight out of a nautical novel. Three yachting capitals, three landscapes, a single long offshore race: the start in Sicily, the passage through northern Sardinia, and the finish in the Principality. It’s a regatta that tests endurance, strategy, and the ability to navigate the open sea, but it also possesses the charm of grand, glamorous crossings, when boats become ambassadors of different styles and traditions.

But the highlight of the sailing season falls between September and October. The shift in pace comes in September. From the 6th to the 12th, the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup brings some of the most spectacular yachts on the international circuit to the coast of Gallura. Monumental in size, equipped with cutting-edge technology, and featuring sails that resemble moving architecture: viewed from the shore, the Maxis form a parade of rare beauty; on board, however, every detail is a matter of tension, calculation, and precision. It is the highlight of the season, the moment when Porto Cervo returns to being what it has always been: one of the world’s great sailing stages.

Without a break, from September 13 to 19, the Rolex Swan Cup celebrates another vision of excellence. The unmistakable lines of the Nautor Swan combine performance and style, Nordic tradition and Mediterranean spirit. At sea, the competition is fierce; at the dock, a discreet elegance reigns, characterized by teak, impeccable uniforms, and rituals shared by an international community of owners.

The closing event, from September 29 to October 4, belongs to the J/70 Cup and Italian Championship. After the giants, here come the compact, lightweight, agile boats: a blend of tactics and adrenaline, with crowded starts, minimal distances, and rankings decided by fractions of a second. It’s a fast-paced, contemporary final, with an almost urban rhythm. While Porto Cervo returns to its more intimate atmosphere, the regatta course remains abuzz. Because here, fall isn’t an end, but the best wind of the year.

Louis Vuitton Cup

Louis Vuitton Cup, the Challenger Selection Series for the America’s Cup, the world’s oldest international sporting trophy. After the 2024 series won by Ineos Britannia in Barcelona, ​​preliminary regattas for the 38th America’s Cup will begin in Cagliari from May 21st to 24th in the Golfo degli Angel, culminating in the final in Naples in 2027.