Naples is preparing to put Italy and its waterfront at the center of world sailing. The city is scheduled to host the 38th Louis Vuitton America's Cup in spring-summer 2027, with the race course planned along the Naples waterfront and team logistics and operations designated for Bagnoli.
The message from Sport e Salute, the national body supporting the organization, is that the Cup is intended as more than a sailing competition. It is presented as a lever for urban regeneration in Bagnoli and for strengthening Naples' connection with the sea.
"Bagnoli sta rinascendo, coinvolgeremo tutti" — "Bagnoli is being reborn, we will involve everyone" — said Nepi Molineris, outlining a vision in which the event reaches beyond the race area to involve the whole city.
Bagnoli at the center of the plan
According to Invitalia, which oversees the Bagnoli redevelopment project, international team bases are planned for Bagnoli, while racing will take place on the Naples waterfront.
Nepi Molineris said the masterplan should connect the Lungomare with Bagnoli, creating a continuous link between the city's historic seafront and the western district hosting the teams. The final 2027 masterplan had not yet been published in the sources available for this article, and the exact number, location and delivery timetable of all team bases remain unclear.
On funding, Nepi Molineris said the Italian government has invested 1.2 billion euros in the redevelopment of Bagnoli. That figure is reported as his statement and was not independently confirmed in the official documents acquired for this article.
What is established across sources is the direction of travel: Bagnoli is designated as the operational heart of the Cup, and the event's proposed civic legacy includes public participation, cultural programming and stronger links between sport, the waterfront and the wider city.
First appointment: the September 2026 preview in the Bay of Naples
Readers do not have to wait until 2027 to see America's Cup racing in Naples.
The official America's Cup website identifies Naples as the venue for a preliminary regatta scheduled for 24-27 September 2026 in the Bay of Naples. This is a preview event and should not be treated as the complete 2027 competition schedule.
The Race Village for the preliminary regatta is planned for Rotonda Diaz, also known as Mappatella Beach, with free entry, public screenings and daily event programming. For visitors, that makes the September dates the most practical first opportunity to experience the event atmosphere on the Lungomare.
If you plan to go, expect a waterfront format: free public access, big screens for racing, and activities around the Village rather than ticketed grandstands. Check the official America's Cup Naples page closer to the dates for the daily program and any access arrangements.
The Immacolatella becomes Sport e Salute's house in Naples
A second key venue is already defined. The historic Palazzo dell'Immacolatella will serve as Sport e Salute's Naples headquarters for the 2027 America's Cup.
According to Sport e Salute, the building is intended to combine operational activity for the Cup with exhibitions focused on Naples' maritime heritage and emigration history. The agreement was presented together with the Central Tyrrhenian Sea Port System Authority.
For readers interested in more than racing, the Immacolatella is worth noting: it is planned as the cultural counterpart to Bagnoli's technical bases and the Lungomare's race course, connecting sport with the port city's history.
What to watch next
Three questions will determine how the promise of involving the whole city holds up.
First, the masterplan. The idea of linking the Lungomare and Bagnoli is central to the narrative presented by Nepi Molineris, but the acquired sources do not establish whether the proposed connections will be completed before the 2027 main event.
Second, the team bases. Bagnoli is confirmed as the planned base area, but details on teams, precise sites and construction timelines are still to be clarified.
Third, public programming. The preliminary regatta's free-access Village at Rotonda Diaz points to an open, city-wide model, and the Immacolatella exhibitions point to a cultural legacy. Whether that extends into lasting waterfront access and neighborhood involvement in Bagnoli will be the real test of 2027.
