America's Cup live at the Little Ship Club

Watch the America's Cup live at the Little Ship Club © Jesus Renedo

Yacht club in heart of London's City throws opens its doors to the public to watch Olympic hero Ben Ainslie go for glory in prestigious race

Sailing fans will be able to watch multiple Olympic champion Sir Ben Ainslie's bid to bring the America's Cup to Britain for the first time in its 166-year history live from Bermuda every weekday evening at the Little Ship Club.

Sir Ben and his British challenge Land Rover BAR will be one of five teams competing during the next two months for the chance to race against Oracle Team USA in the final.

For those not lucky enough to be able to view the events under the tropical sun, they can watch it on large TV screens in the comfortable surroundings of the Little Ship Club's riverside premises near London's Cannon Street, starting on May 26.

In keeping with its aim to provide sailing opportunities for all, the club is opening up these screenings to non-members who wish to cheer on their team or simply learn more about high performance racing.

Everyone is welcome, regardless of whether they have sailed before or which team they support.

Every race evening during the week, the Little Ship Club bar will be serving a variety of drinks and refreshments, which can also be enjoyed on the Thames-side terrace before and after the racing.

The America's Cup is the oldest trophy in international sport, and is among the world's most exciting races, dubbed "F1 on water" because of the speeds at which the high performance catamarans can fly over the sea on their hydrofoils. Alongside the racing on large TV screens viewers will also be able to study the design of an America's Cup boat up close through holograms, provided by Project 11.

Audiences will be hoping Sir Ben will be able to emulate his performance in the last Cup in 2013 when he rescued his then team, Oracle Team USA, from almost certain defeat and staged one of the greatest comebacks in sporting history.

The club will be open to the public from 5pm every weekday, and for just £2 fans will have access to all the races. Visitors are strongly advised to pre-register for a wristband, but they can also be purchased on the night.

Racing is likely to start at about 6pm each evening and last for two hours. For more information visit www.littleshipclub.co.uk

About the America's Cup races

Six teams: Land Rover BAR, Oracle Team USA, Artemis Racing, Emirates Team New Zealand, Groupama Team France and Softbank Team Japan, will compete in two round robins for the Louis Vuitton America's Cup qualifiers between May 26 and June 3.

After this one team is eliminated and the other four contenders (Oracle Team USA is already guaranteed one of the two spots in the final as defending champion) battle it out to become the America's Cup Challenger. This team will face Oracle Team USA in the finals between June 17-18 and June 24-27.

The last America's Cup final took place in 2013, won by Oracle Team USA. In the 34 times the competition has taken place, only four nations have ever won: America, New Zealand, Australia and Switzerland.

The boats used in the competition have always represented the pinnacle of marine engineering.

The 2017 the America's Cup Class boats are high performance catamarans that lift out of the water on foils.

Sir Ben is a four-time Olympic gold medallist, and will be going for his second successive America's Cup win. Land Rover BAR won the World Series in the run-up to Bermuda.

The Little Ship Club will be screening the round robins and challenger races on weekdays only, but plans to open on weekends for the finals – please check the website for updates.