Luxury watch brand Rolex has become SailGP’s inaugural title partner, in a tie-up running for the next 10 years, as the international sailing series prepares to head into its fifth season.
Through a deal unveiled yesterday, Rolex has expanded its previous tie-up with the league (it has been a SailGP partner since that property launched in 2019), in a deal described by the league’s managing director, Andy Thompson, to Sportcal (GlobalData Sport) as “one of the most significant in sailing history.”
The tie-up means the series will be known as the Rolex SailGP Championship for the next decade.
Another element of the deal will see Rolex become title partner for the Los Angeles Sail Grand Prix, which in the 2024-25 campaign will take place from March 15 to 16.
In addition, Rolex will continue as SailGP’s official timepiece through the end of season 14.
Speaking to Sportcal as the deal was made public, Thompson said: “With Rolex, they’ve been with us since day one, they’ve been synonymous with us as a property. We sat down and considered how we could do more together, this was the natural next step for them, enabling them to take more ownership of the championship and solidify another long-term relationship.
“The deal is the most significant in sailing history. This is a significant investment over a 10-year period, which again shows the trust we’ve built up over our first four seasons.”
He added, regarding the lengthy nature of the tie-up: “If you have a title partner, they need to be long-term - in this case, both sides wanted that.”
Aside from the title sponsorship itself, Thompson added that Rolex will also benefit from “more graphical displays on our broadcasts, and more inventory on-site, as well as more hospitality.
“We feel privileged to be in a position to bring these major partners on board, it’s not something we’re taking lightly.”
This expansion follows two major commercial deals unveiled by SailGP over the last week or so - both DP World and Emirates have become global league partners, in the case of Emirates expanding a previous deal.
Thompson, on the subject of all three deals being unveiled in a short period, has commented: “Partners who get in now at SailGP are coming on board when we’re in our growth cycle, they’ll experience the benefit of that [later on].
“Partners are starting to see that we offer our product on a consistent basis, which delivers value for them and will continue to do so.”
The Rolex deal also comes with SailGP’s fifth season beginning over the weekend off the coast of Dubai, with the Dubai Sail Grand Prix taking place across November 23 and 24.
The 12-team series’ 2024-25 calendar entails 14 races across five continents, an increase from the 12 events across four continents that constituted the 2023-24 schedule.
A quartet of new locations - Brazil, Germany, Switzerland, and Auckland in New Zealand - are on the agenda.
Other significant series sponsors include Mubadala as global partner, Oracle as global data partner, and Apex as financial solutions partner.
In terms of Rolex’s other sporting tie-ups, earlier this week the brand became a global partner of women’s tennis’ WTA.
Rolex also sponsors a plethora of events in the worlds of cricket, motorsport, and more.
