America's Cup Trivia

The America's Cup is one of the oldest international sporting trophies in history.

In 1851, the Royal Yacht Squadron from England and the New York Yacht Club raced around the Isle of Wight in England. The NY yacht club won.
The winning boat of the first event was a 100-foot schooner named 'America' from New York Yacht Club. After winning the cup, the schooner was sold for a sum of $25,000, $5000 more than they paid for it.
The trophy was renamed the America’s Cup after the yacht which won the first race, though it is informally known as the Auld Mug.
The America's Cup is considered the oldest sporting trophy in the world.
From 1851 to 1983, the USA won the America’s Cup, that is 132 years until Australia and the Royal Perth Yacht Club triumphed in 1983. Up to that point, The New York Yacht Club had successfully defended the Cup 25 times in a row.
British tea magnate, Sir Thomas Lipton, challenged for the trophy five times between 1899 and 1930, though never won.
The winner of the America’s Cup race has the right to decide the rules for the next contest, including the types of boats to be used, the location of the race course and when the race will take place
Team New Zealand's victory in 1995 was with their first-ever challenge.
In 1996 the Cup trophy was seriously vandalized by 28-year-old New Zealand Māori activist, Benjamin Peri Nathan, who reportedly hit the trophy 50 times with a hammer.

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