The Ocean Race Europe 2025: Everything you need to know

Seven groups, six weeks, 5 legs, one unforgettable race. For its 2025 version, the Ocean Race Europe will convey collectively among the world’s prime offshore racing expertise.

A fleet-full of excessive performing foiling 60ft IMOCAs will make an difficult 4,500-mile run round Europe. The route will snake by way of the Baltic, the North Sea, the Atlantic, the English Channel, the Mediterranean, and into the Adriatic earlier than a grand finale in Boka Bay, Montenegro.

What’s the Ocean Race Europe?

The Ocean Race Europe is run by the organisers of the Ocean Race. The occasion takes place each 4 years. This 12 months marks its second version, after its debut in 2021.

The Ocean Race Europe is offset from the Ocean Race (as soon as the Volvo Ocean Race, earlier than that the Whitbread Around the World Race, extensively held as one of the intense, iconic crusing offshore occasions on the racing calendar) by two years, permitting groups to partake in each.

It comes forward of the inaugural Ocean Race Atlantic (2026), which is able to characteristic an thrilling sprint from New York to Barcelona, and the extremely anticipated fifteenth version of the Ocean Race, which units off in January 2027 from Alicante.

A number of groups competing this summer time are additionally set to participate within the subsequent Ocean Race, however the Ocean Race Europe isn’t only a heat up. It’s a excessive depth occasion in its personal proper.

The Ocean Race Europe 2025: Racing for the Ocean

For its second instalment, the Ocean Race Europe’s objective is “Connecting Europe”. The route will hyperlink among the area’s most iconic maritime areas, in addition to some much less well-known crusing waters, and hopefully forge new pathways between them.

This 12 months’s race additionally centres themes of sustainability, and can use its platform to assist shield the oceans. The race hopes to make crusing an ever-more sustainable sport by modelling accountable useful resource use.

Photograph: The Ocean Race.

The Route

Leg 1 – The fleet 850 nautical miles from Kiel to Portsmouth, England, (Scoring gate: Kiel Lighthouse) by way of the Baltic Sea, the North Sea, and the English Channel.
Leg 2 – The longest of the race, with a 1,400 nautical mile stretch from Portsmouth (Scoring gate: The Needles) to Cartagena, Spain that may take the fleet by way of the Atlantic, together with a fly-by in Patosinhos/Porto, Portugal.
Leg 3 – 650 nautical miles by way of the higher Mediterranean, cruising from Cartagena (Scoring gate: Cabo de Palos) to Good, France.
Leg 4  – 600 miles from Good (Scoring gate: Monaco) to Genoa, Italy, which hosted the Grand Finale of the primary inaugural Ocean Race Europe in 2021.
Leg 5 – Ultimate 1,000 mile stretch from Genoa (Scoring gate: Santo Stefano), the Ocean Race Europe fleet will head for a grand finale in Boka Bay, Montenegro.

Group Genova pays tribute to the coaching ship of the Italian Navy, Amerigo Vespucci on the Grand Finale of the 2023 Ocean Race in Genoa, Italy. Photograph: Diletta Nicosia/Getty Photos

Scoring gates near the leg will give groups alternatives to earn further factors for sturdy begins.

Moreover, a brief, inshore coastal race in Boka Bay on 20 September will provide groups the possibility to attain factors equal to an offshore leg. It’s positive to be stiff competitors proper till the final second!

What groups are in The Ocean Race Europe?

For the 2025 version, 7 groups will mix among the world’s prime offshore racing expertise. The fleet consists of 11 Vendée Globe 2024-2025 skippers and 6 winners of earlier editions of The Ocean Race.

Photograph: The Ocean Race.

Group Malizia (Germany)

Led by skipper Boris Herrmann. He’s joined by a world workforce that features American sailor Cole Brauer and brit Will Harris.

Group Holcim – PRB (Switzerland)

Led by skipper Rosalin Kuiper, alum of the newest Ocean Race (2023).

Group Paprec Arkéa (France)

With skipper Yoan Richomme on the head of a predominantly French workforce. Richomme got here second within the 2024-2025 Vendee Globe, regardless of it being his first entry, and skippered the successful boat within the Ocean Race Europe 2021 version’s VO65 class.

Canada Ocean Racing – Be Water Optimistic (Canada)

Led by Canadian skipper Scott Shawyer, who’s working in the direction of the Vendee Globe 2028. The workforce additionally consists of British ocean racer and Yachting World contributor Pip Hare.

Allagrande Mapei Racing (Italy)

Led by Italian skipper Ambrogio Beccaria. The workforce consists of the boat’s former skipper, offshore sailor Thomas Ruyant.

Group Biotherm (France)

Led by skipper Paul Meilhat, additionally with British sailor Sam Goodchild.

Group Amaala (Switzerland / Saudi Arabia)

Led by Vendee Globe skipper Alan Roura. Amaala is the fleet’s largest workforce, and consists of co-skippers Simon Koster and Conrad Colman.

Groups will race with 4 sailors on board, as properly an onboard reporter who’s strictly prohibited from helping with any crusing. By regulation, every workforce should embody not less than two nationalities and one feminine sailor.

How you can observe the Ocean Race Europe 2025

This 12 months, the Ocean Race Europe’s official on-line tracker, developed in collaboration with PredictWind, will enable viewers to maintain up with the fleet in actual time. The tracker will provide options corresponding to reside GPS monitoring; international climate overlays; predictive routing, a full telemetry feed, and OBR multimedia integration. It is going to be out there on the Ocean Race’s web site from 10 August 2025.

Moreover, the brand new “Onboard” TV collection will take you proper onto the water with the racing groups. With extra cameras, microphones, and loads of unique footage from the onboard reporters, viewers will get to swing proper into the center of the motion.

Photograph: The Ocean Race Europe.

Count on new episodes each Tuesday and Friday, with a season preview on Friday 8 August. Get pleasure from 12 episodes over 6 weeks, every airing 19:00 BST within the UK and 20:00 CEST in the remainder of Europe.

Different reside exhibits on TNT sports activities (UK) and Eurosport embody:

Reside Dockout Present (Kiel), 10 August at 12:15 BST
Official Race Begin (Kiel), 10 August at 14:30-16:00 BST
Coastal Race (Boka Bay), 20 September 13:00-14:30 BST
Reside Dockout Present (Boka Bay), 20 September at 11:30-12:30 BST
Ocean Race Europe 2025 Wrap-up, 26 September at 19:00 BST

Race protection will even be out there to stream on HBOMax, within the UK, Germany, and Italy, and on Discovery+ in the remainder of Europe.

Wish to see the motion firsthand within the UK? Go to the Ocean Reside Park 14-17 August. Photograph: The Ocean Race Europe.

Race together with the Ocean Race Europe 2025

This 12 months, the Ocean Race Europe can also be partnering with Digital Regatta. The net platform will mirror the reside race’s route, providing individuals the possibility to check their tactical information as they (nearly) race alongside the fleet. Enroll on-line earlier than the race begins on 10 August 2025.

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