From 28–31 August, the 12-strong fleet of high-performance one-design owner-driver RC44s will compete for their 2025 World Championship title in the heart of Dutch sailing: Scheveningen, The Hague. 

Known for its vibrant sailing culture, challenging tides, and shifting sandbanks, Scheveningen, the seaside resort district of The Hague, is the home of the North Sea Regatta and in 2023 played host to the Sailing World Championships. 

This year’s RC44 World Championship is being hosted by Nico Poons of Charisma, the 44Cup’s 2022 and 2023 champion, out of the Jachtclub Scheveningen. Currently lying second in the overall standings after three events, Poons is looking forward to returning to familiar waters: “I probably started racing there when I was around 16, but it’s been about 15 years since I was last there, so I’m not sure I have any home advantage,” Poons mused. “We’re in the summer season, so we should have good breeze, around 12 to 15 knots. The Jachtclub Scheveningen is a very nice floating clubhouse in the middle of the port, and I’m looking forward to hosting the owners’ dinner and a party for the crews. It will be a nice social event.”

Leading the 2025 44Cup Tour after a string of podium finishes this season is fellow Monaco-based Team Nika, helmed by owner Vladimir Prosikhin and guided by British tactician Nic Asher. Team Nika remains one of the most successful teams in 44Cup history, the only crew to have won a hat-trick of World Championship titles - first in Cascais in 2015, then in Marstrand in 2017 (with a race to spare), and again in Cascais in 2018.

Having raced in Scheveningen during the 470 World Tour, Asher knows the venue, though he admits its conditions can be unpredictable: “What I remember is sand, herring, and seagulls. But, a bit like the Solent in the UK, there’s lots of current, the weather could do anything, and it will probably be quite choppy if we get wind against tide.”

Thanks to the RC44’s clever design - packing down to the size of a 40ft container for cost-effective transport by land or sea - the fleet has expanded its reach, visiting four new venues over the past two seasons and attracting fresh interest. Among the newcomers is Dutch entry Warp 5, owned by Jan Scholtes, which made its debut at the last event in Marstrand. Using the 44Cup’s innovative black boat programme (a trial boat provided to new teams), Warp 5 is set to compete at the Worlds: “In Marstrand, surfing the big swell was great, we really enjoyed ourselves. That was our warm-up. I didn’t really know what to expect, but the boat handled much better than I thought. It sails tremendously well, and now, with one event of experience, we can go into the Worlds better equipped to compete.”