The 2025 World Match Racing Tour will be celebrating its 25th anniversary when the 60th Congressional Cup is held April 30-May 4 in Long Beach, CA. The event will be preceded by the Ficker Cup Grade 2 event on April 25-27 which will award the top two finishers an invitation to The Congressional Cup.
Recognized as the ‘Grandfather’ of modern world-class match racing, The Congressional Cup is the longest running event of its kind in North America, founded by Long Beach Yacht Club in 1965 and run annually by over 300 club volunteers. Since 2000, the event has been represented as a world championship stage of the World Match Racing Tour, the world’s longest running professional sailing series.
Ten skippers will be invited for the 2025 edition that uses the Catalina 37 provided by host Long Beach Yacht Club, with teams competing for a $75,000 prize purse that distributes $20,000 to the winner.
“Meeting so many skippers, crew, and umpires during the 37th America’ Cup events in Barcelona who have made their mark at the Ficker Cup and Congressional Cup highlights the pivotal role these world-class regattas play in the sailing community,” reports Lisa Meier, incoming Commodore of Long Beach Yacht Club for 2025.
Past Congressional Cup champions include Ted Turner (USA), Dennis Conner (USA), Rod Davis (NZL), Harold Cudmore (GBR), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Chris Dickson (NZL), Terry Hutchinson (USA), Gavin Brady (NZL), Dean Barker (NZL), Francesco Bruni (ITA), Taylor Canfield (USA), Johnie Berntsson (SWE), Ian Williams (GBR), and Chris Poole (USA).
The 2024 tour will hold its penultimate stage in Bermuda on October 29-November 3 before the tour concludes in China on December 10-15. The complete 2025 schedule has yet to be released but will begin in China on January 8-12.
Tour details: wmrt.com
Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion.
Previous champions include Sir Ben Ainslie (GBR), Taylor Canfield (USA), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Magnus Holmberg (SWE), Peter Holmberg (ISV), Adam Minoprio (NZL), Torvar Mirsky (AUS), Bertrand Pace (FRA), Jesper Radich (DEN), Phil Robertson (NZL), and Ian Williams (GBR).
Since inception, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD23million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors.
Source: WMRT
