Imoca

What Imoca does

IMOCA (International Monohull Open Class Association) is the international governing body for the IMOCA 60-foot (18.28 m) offshore racing monohull class, founded in 1991 and headquartered in Lorient, France, with an administrative office in Paris c/o the French Sailing Federation (FFVoile). It sanctions the IMOCA Globe Series championship — a multi-year calendar of elite solo and crewed ocean races including the Vendée Globe, The Ocean Race, Route du Rhum, Transat Jacques Vabre, Transat Café L'OR, Rolex Fastnet Race, Retour à La Base, and the newly introduced The Ocean Race Atlantic — and enforces the class rule (jauge) governing boat specifications such as foil configurations, wing masts, hull dimensions and sail areas for 60-foot foiling monocoques. The organization also owns sustainability programs (Green Sail, RISE, Cap Carbone carbon-emission cap on boat construction) and formalized scientific data partnerships with UNESCO-IOC, IFREMER and OceanOPS that convert race transits into oceanographic observation campaigns.

IMOCA's commercial engine is a hybrid of race organization/sanctioning, membership and class fees from participating teams, and sponsorship/partnership agreements with technical and sustainability partners such as Yanmar, 11th Hour Racing, World Sailing and FFVoile. It operates with a lean central staff (1–10 employees) and serves a global customer base of roughly 40 active IMOCA 60 teams and ~120 professional navigators across 16 countries, with elite teams including MACIF Santé Prévoyance, Holcim-PRB, 11th Hour Racing, Charal, Team Malizia and FDJ UNITED. Distribution runs through both physical race events and a direct digital ecosystem — imoca.org, imocaTV, social channels and the Virtual Regatta-powered IMOCA Virtual Series — which together support media rights, sponsor visibility and a global sailing audience.

Name

Imoca

Legal name

IMOCA

Website

https://imoca.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

IMOCA is the international sailing class association governing 60-foot offshore racing monohulls, sanctioning the IMOCA Globe Series championship (Vendée Globe, The Ocean Race, Route du Rhum and others) for roughly 40 professional teams across 16 countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Offshore Sailing Class Association

NAICS

Spectator Sports (71121), Spectator Sports (7112)

SIC

Services-Racing, Including Track Operation (7948)

akta.pro primary industry

International Sport Federations (IFs) (MPAKAFAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Virtual & Hybrid Participation Events (App-Based, Remote/Hybrid Races) (MPAKAIAH)

Keywords

• Offshore sailing class
• Ocean racing championship
• Yacht class rules
• Round-the-world racing
• Sustainability sailing

Headquarters

HQ city

Lorient

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Race Organization and Sanctioning: IMOCA organizes and sanctions major international ocean races including the IMOCA Globe Series championship, generating revenue through entry fees, sponsorship agreements, and event partnerships
2. Membership and Class Fees: Sailing teams and skippers pay membership fees to be part of the IMOCA class, gaining access to championship rankings, race entries, and official class certification

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

IMOCA is an international class association that governs the technical specifications, classification, and championship racing for 60-foot (18.28m) ocean racing monohulls. It organizes and sanctions the IMOCA Globe Series championship calendar — including the Vendée Globe (solo round-the-world), The Ocean Race (crewed round-the-world), Route du Rhum, Rolex Fastnet Race, Transat Café L'OR, Retour à La Base, and The Ocean Race Atlantic — and runs sustainability initiatives (Cap Carbone, Green Sail, RISE) and scientific data partnerships with UNESCO and IFREMER.

Product overview

Imoca (International Monohull Open Class Association) is the governing body for the IMOCA 60 class, a premier offshore ocean racing series featuring 60-foot foiling monocoques. The organization manages the IMOCA Globe Series championship, a multi-year competition calendar that includes prestigious events such as The Ocean Race (round-the-world crewed), Vendée Globe (solo round-the-world), Route du Rhum, Transat Jacques Vabre, Transat Café L'OR, Rolex Fastnet Race, Retour à La Base, and other major transatlantic races. The organization also oversees the IMOCA rule/jauge that governs boat specifications, manages sustainability initiatives, and partners with Virtual Regatta for the IMOCA Virtual Series. Individual IMOCA 60 yachts like MSIG Europe and FDJ UNITED represent the competing vessels in the championship, each with distinct technical specifications ranging from 18.28m to 18.28m in length and featuring various foil and rig configurations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• IMOCA Globe Series Official IMOCA championship series featuring a multi-year calendar of elite offshore sailing competitions including The Ocean Race, Vendée Globe, Route du Rhum, Transat Jacques Vabre, Rolex Fastnet Race, Transat Café L'OR, Retour à La Base, and The Ocean Race Atlantic. It is the central competitive product sanctioned by IMOCA for its 60-foot monohull class.
• The Ocean Race Atlantic A new crewed IMOCA race from New York to Lorient, first edition scheduled for September 2026. Designed for crew configurations and serving as a stepping stone within the IMOCA Globe Series championship.
• Route du Rhum - Destination Guadeloupe

Quantifiable outcome

• First sailing class to implement a carbon emission cap (Cap Carbone) for boat construction in 2023
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• 11th Hour RacingcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner11th Hour Racing serves as Official Sustainability Partner of IMOCA. The partnership focuses on promoting sustainable practices in ocean racing, including environmental initiatives and awareness campaigns.
• YanmarcoreTechnology or IntegrationYanmar is the Official Technical Partner of IMOCA, providing marine engine technology and technical support for IMOCA racing vessels.
• UNESCOcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UNESCO through the IOC (Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission) for scientific data collection during IMOCA races, monitoring marine environment and climate indicators.
• IFREMERcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench marine research institute partnered with IMOCA for oceanographic data collection during races and scientific collaboration on marine environment studies.
• OceanOPSminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for ocean observation and data collection during IMOCA racing events.
• The Magenta ProjectminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainability development partner promoting gender equality and diversity in ocean sailing.
• MarineShift360minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for sustainable marine industry practices and environmental responsibility in sailing.
• World SailingcoreOthersInternational sailing federation that sanctions and recognizes IMOCA as an official international class.
• Fédération Française de Voile (FFVoile)coreOthersFrench Sailing Federation providing administrative support and hosting IMOCA's Paris office.
• Ultra Violet AgencyminorOthersProject management and editorial partner for IMOCA communications, based in Lorient.
• Studio be-polesminorOthersDesign agency for IMOCA branding, with offices in Paris and New York.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• TP52 Super Series: Professional monohull circuit for the TP52 class with a multi-event annual championship. Comparable in operating a tightly controlled one-design professional sailing class with similar owner-sponsor-team economics.
• Class40 Association: Governing body for the Class40 offshore monohull class, the closest French-based sister class to IMOCA. Directly comparable in managing class rules, a championship calendar, and shared offshore racing teams and skippers.
• Classe Mini (Mini 6.50): Governing class for the Mini 6.50 offshore solo/double-handed racers. Comparable offshore class association model and pipeline for sailors progressing toward IMOCA 60 campaigns.
• The Ocean Race: Organizer of the crewed round-the-world ocean race that is one of IMOCA's two flagship events. Closely comparable as a professional offshore sailing championship operator with overlapping team and sponsor relationships.
• Clipper Round the World Yacht Race: Organizer of a crewed round-the-world yacht race with an amateur-professional model. Comparable as a round-the-world sailing event operator sharing media, sponsorship, and audience overlap with IMOCA events.
• SailGP: Professional sailing league running a multi-event global championship with national teams and foiling technology. Comparable business model — season-based professional sailing championship — and competing for similar sponsorship dollars and broadcast reach.
• Ocean Fifty (formerly Multi50): Governing class for the French Ocean Fifty offshore multihulls. Comparable as a France-based offshore racing class with similar technical-rule, calendar, and sponsorship dynamics and overlap in skippers and partners.
• Union Course au Large (UCL): French offshore racing coordinating body that represents IMOCA, Class40, Ocean Fifty, and other classes. Comparable as the broader ecosystem organizer that influences IMOCA's event scheduling and stakeholder relations.
• America's Cup Event (ACE): Organizer of the America's Cup, the pinnacle professional sailing event. Comparable as an elite sailing event organizer competing for the same sponsor, broadcaster, and team-talent pool that IMOCA serves.

Broad incumbents

• World Sailing: The international federation that sanctions IMOCA as an official international class. Comparable as the broader governing body in the same sport, though its portfolio covers all sailing disciplines rather than specializing in offshore racing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/imocaTV
• Facebookfacebook.com/IMOCAGlobeSeries
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/classe-imoca
• Instagraminstagram.com/Imocaglobeseries
• TikToktiktok.com/@imocaglobeseries

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Imoca