SailGP has announced a new partnership with Bernoulli | Locke and, in doing so, has released further information of how its proposed ‘fan-owned’ racing team will operate.
Covering the Caribbean and Bermuda, the new Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) team hopes to be the tenth participant in the global sailing competition and to start racing from Season 4, which will begin 17th June 2023 with the United States Sail Grand Prix | Chicago at Navy Pier.
Founded by Bernoulli | Locke – an organisation that describes itself as a web3 intelligence, ventures and community company – the DAO team will utilise the blockchain platform of SailGP partner NEAR in order to manage various aspects of ownership, governance and racing decisions.
According to a statement, ‘fans can take the first step to getting involved now in this historic new DAO fan-owned team by indicating initial interest’, however, ‘the opportunity to participate is expected to be available to a limited number of individuals and institutions meeting financial and other applicable requirements’, which, as yet, have not been revealed.
According to the series, a new SailGP team costs $25m (£19m), with a further $7m (£5.3m) required annually for operating costs.
As to what aspects of the team’s operation qualifying fans will be able to vote on, SailGP has stated this will include ‘decisions ranging from the team name and flag, athlete selection, boat livery, fan benefits and access, sponsorship, management, team business decisions and more.’
Furthermore, SailGP expects ‘that fans will be able to own a seasonal membership pass (through purchasing and holding an NFT) that provides pass holders access to the community as well as governance but not equity.’
SailGP CEO Russell Coutts, said, “Last month we shared that we had updated our SailGP Participation Agreement to allow a DAO owned team to join the league, and now we are very excited to see David Palmer and his team of founders at Bernoulli | Locke forming a team under these amended rules.
“David and his team have a unique marketing and operational background building global membership-based communities – demonstrating the expertise required to launch and assist in operating a fan-owned team facilitated by a DAO.
“Professional sport is about building a passionate fanbase, and as a tech-forward global league – SailGP has leaed into Web3 to further develop the future of fandom. We look at the fan-owned team as the ultimate implementation of a loyalty program, and this new Caribbean & Bermuda team will redefine the fan experience and team ownership model. It is a testament to the value of our relationship with NEAR that a decentralized team can be created to ultimately provide control of a team to a passionate community of fans.”
David Palmer, Bernoulli | Locke Founder and CEO, added, “With our partners, we are delighted to bring a new and exciting level of engagement and participation for sports team owners and fans and add a new participant in SailGP. Our goal is to have a vibrant community of owners and fans jointly sharing the incredible journey of establishing and operating a competitive global racing team.
“Using the NEAR Protocol and the unique structure of the DAO we have established, we believe that we can achieve our goals with transparency and legal compliance, enabling the participation of an international community sharing a common sports interest and passion. We look forward to meeting the other teams on the water at the first race next season!”
