Red Bull Italy SailGP team acquired by investors including Anne Hathaway
The Italy SailGP Team. Image courtesy of Ricardo Pinto/SailGP.
SailGP has confirmed the acquisition of the Red Bull Italy SailGP team by a consortium of investors and sports professionals. The group includes Hollywood star Anne Hathaway, alongside Muse Capital founding partner Assia Grazioli-Venier and luxury brand entrepreneur Gian Luca Passi de Preposulo. Sailor Jimmy Spithill takes the role of chief executive officer and co-owner.
The acquisition introduces the first female-led ownership group within the SailGP circuit, with a commercial strategy focused on the growing interest in the mixed-gender championship.
Investors include MFO Certuity, Yeh Capital, Alexander Gilkes, Evan Yurman, Anne Hathaway, Adam Shulman, Miriam Leone, Julie Eddleman, Heather Karatz, Pete Delgrosso and Dr Jennifer Ashton. Red Bull continues as title partner.
The announcement follows several recent team sales under SailGP’s central ownership model. Earlier this year, Coalition Capital, owned by French football superstar Kylian Mbappé, invested in the France SailGP Team.
“Italy has an extraordinary sailing legacy, and our mission is to be a catalyst for its next phase,” says Assia Grazioli-Venier, founder of Muse Capital and Muse Sport. “Muse Sport is honoured to lead this pivotal moment for our sport. SailGP has massive commercial potential for global growth and impact that this ownership group will realise, leaning on elite leadership with strategic entrepreneurial capital.
“As someone deeply connected to Italian and sailing culture, it’s an honour and a responsibility to help guide a team that embodies excellence, innovation, and true inclusivity.”
In a media release, Hathaway comments: “The new Red Bull Italy SailGP team embodies a powerful convergence of innovation, athletic excellence, and a deep commitment to inclusive leadership — particularly in advancing the role of women in high-performance sport.”
Russell Coutts, chief executive and co-founder of SailGP, adds: “We’re delighted to welcome Assia, Gian Luca, Jimmy and the wider Muse Sport consortium to SailGP’s expanding group of investors and team owners. Together, they bring an incredibly experienced and exciting lineup of commercially-minded investors to the table, marking another significant milestone in SailGP’s growth as a league.”
Jimmy Spithill, CEO, founder and co-owner of SailGP Italy, says: “Being at the top of the sport as an athlete for the last 25 years, it’s incredibly exciting to put together such a talented World Class Team-both on and off the water. This marks the next chapter in the evolution of Italian sailing, and I’m thrilled to share this journey with Assia and Gian Luca.”
Tifosy Capital & Advisory served as the exclusive financial advisor to Muse Sport during the sale.
The Rolex SailGP Championship resumes next month with the Mubadala New York Sail Grand Prix on 7–8 June 2025, followed by the European leg beginning in Portsmouth, UK, on 19–20 July 2025.
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