Power to the Challenger of Record

Circolo della Vela Sicilia is the Challenger of Record and is represented by Luna Rossa. 

In 2015, Luna Rossa angrily dropped out of the 2017 America's Cup when Oracle and all the other challengers except Team New Zealand demonstrated the tyranny of the majority and binned the AC62 Class Rule. 

Trick me once, shame on you. Trick me twice, shame on me.

This time around, Luna Rossa holds all the cards on the challenger side of the table.

• There can be no changes to the Protocol without Luna Rossa's approval.
• There is no "Challenger Committee" or anything similar. Article 1.2 says Luna Rossa "represents" all the other challengers, meaning they make the Protocol related decisions for all the challengers.
• Even if they get eliminated in the racing, they remain the "Challenger of Record." Another team may go on to be the Challenger in the Match against New Zealand, but Circolo della Vela Sicilia remains Challenger of Record - the decision maker for all the challengers.
• Prada is the main sponsor for the entire event, including the Match, and has wide power over the commercial rights.

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What's the "Or Else?

What happens if one of the competitors breaches the terms of the Protocol?

Sometimes the penalty is clear, sometimes the Arbitration Panel decides.

Here's an example from Article 2.2 of the Protocol: "Each Competitor shall be required to enter and participate in all events of the ACWS. AnyChallenger that does not meet this requirement will no longer be eligible to participate in either the Christmas Race or the Challenger Selection Series."

So, if a Challenger misses an AC World Series, they have no chance of getting to the Prada Cup, much less the Match. Pretty clear.

But what if the Defender decides they'd rather train in Auckland than race in the ACWS? Not so clear. Article 53.10 to the rescue: the Arbitration Panel imposes the penalty, if any. Remember this when we talk about payments, below.