F50 League LLC

11/05/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/05/2026 07:38

Entry of Team 14 could create ‘snowball’ of transfers

Team 14's entry into the league could create a 'snowball' of shocking athlete transfers that forces teams to enlist fresh talent ahead of the 2027 Season.

Speaking on the latest episode of SailGP Today, SailGP commentators Stevie Morrison and Alex Hobern referenced Artemis' arrival into the league last season, which created a flurry of high profile moves. The poaching of wing trimmer Chris Draper from Bonds Flying Roos and then-Brazilian flight controller Andy Maloney sparked the domino effect that led to swaps between five teams.

"We don't know who the new team is," said Hobern, "but we know that when a new team joins SailGP it can create a snowball effect of people moving, swapping and being poached."

The focus for any new team is on filling the three key positions of driver, wing trimmer and flight controller with preferably experienced athletes. Team 14's option is therefore to 'cause carnage with some big contracts' or 'go and find some youngsters new to the sport', Morrison said. The latter option would be 'exciting in its own way', but make the new team's first season 'really hard'.

The challenge they have, he said, is the limited pool of athletes with F50 experience.

"Fundamentally, there aren't that many sailors in the world that have the talent or had the opportunity to sail an F50. It's a different game."

SailGP reporter Lisa Darmanin weighed in with rumors the new team is 'trying to poach a few big players'. But the chaos may be limited after teams locked in athletes with multi-season contracts after last season's transfer frenzy. Morrison backed this up, saying teams have become more 'streetwise' after Mubadala Brazil's 'naive' decision to offer one-season contracts to its debut line-up in 2025.

The result could be 'less movement than last season', Darmanin said, and the entry of 'fresh talent'. It comes after SailGP CEO Russell Coutts highlighted the fleet's lack of athlete and crew depth as a major problem.

Morrison's athlete transfer watchlist

Morrison touted numerous SailGP athletes as ones-to-watch ahead of the transfer window, name checking the likes of Italian wing trimmer Kyle Langford, British flight controller Luke Parkinson, French flight controller Jason Saunders, Danish wing trimmer Tom Johnson and Australian grinders Kinley Fowler and Sam Newton.

When it comes to the driver, Darmanin revealed rumors that the athlete is 'coming from the existing fleet', specifically from 'one of the top teams'.

The F50 fleet will next meet at the Emirates Dubai Sail Grand Prix on 21-22 November. Get your tickets or find out how to watch from wherever you are.

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F50 League LLC published this content on November 05, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on November 05, 2026 at 13:38 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]