About us

Mission

To promote and encourage the practice of sailing and participation in sailing competitions at both national and international levels.

Objectives

To create a strong club culture and a sense of belonging to a prestigious community dedicated to competitive sailing;
To build competitive crews composed of club members and support individual athletes participating in various sailing competitions across the region (Bulgaria and Greece), including keelboat racing, the traditional Yawl-6 class, SB20 one-design sport boats, and windsurfing competitions;
To expand and improve the skills and individual capabilities of club members, encouraging specialization in the different aspects of competitive sailing;
To support yacht owners who are members of the club in activities related to logistics and preparation of their yachts for participation in regattas;
To preserve the tradition and further develop the Yawl-6 class in Bulgaria;
To attract new like-minded individuals — physically active people with competitive spirit and a desire to participate in amateur-level competitive sailing;
To establish strategic partnerships with leading companies and media organizations in support of the club and its mission.

Activities

Participation of club crews and individual competitors in sailing competitions of various formats and classes in Bulgaria and neighboring countries;
Management, full maintenance, and servicing of racing and sport-cruising yachts owned by club members, including acquisition of additional equipment and personal gear required for participation in regattas in accordance with organizers’ requirements and international sailing regulations;
Organization of training sessions, clinics, and other forms of education for club members, either directly or in cooperation with partner organizations;
Organization of club events in various formats aimed at strengthening communication and relationships between club members, guests, sponsors, and partners;
Commercial activities supporting the club’s primary mission, including corporate team-building events, company sailing regattas, sailing show programs, and sales of club-branded apparel and accessories;
Promotional and media activities, including maintaining an online club presence and actively using digital channels to promote the club’s activities through regular multimedia content production.

Status

Sofia Sail Yacht Club was founded in 2023 in Sofia, Bulgaria, as a non-profit association in public benefit (UIC 207297855) and is a regular member of the Bulgarian Sailing Federation.

Brief History

The roots of Sofia Sail can be traced back well before the formal establishment of the club — to the tradition of the Yawl-6 class and the long-standing Sofia sailing community formed around these emblematic boats. It was within this environment that a culture of seamanship, shared dreams, love for the sea and sailing under wind power, and ambition for sporting achievement was created. Some of the people who later stood behind the creation of Sofia Sail dedicated many years to preserving this tradition in Sofia and developing the class.
The collective “chasing of the wind” by the core group behind the organization unofficially began in the summer of 2021 with its first major adventure — bringing the remarkable racing yacht Hispaniola from Venice to Bulgaria, a yacht with which the then still non-existent club continues to compete to this day.
With the yacht’s arrival in Bulgaria came the beginning of the team’s participation in regattas along the Bulgarian Black Sea coast, with a crew composed primarily of people living in Sofia — far from the sea. Most of them were passionate windsurfers looking for new opportunities for intense experiences and development in different forms of competitive sailing.
The story of the yacht itself and its owner — the main driving force behind the entire initiative — is no less impressive and deserves to be told separately.
At the core of the initiative stood 5–6 individuals with extensive experience in sailing sports and seamanship, as well as a special interest in designing, inventing, building, tuning, and maintaining everything that moves on water powered by wind.
The newly formed team needed a name and crew shirts — this is how “Sofia Sail” was born.
Both the original core group and the people who later identified with the idea of a Sofia-based team competing across the seas aboard an impressive racing yacht are characterized by their diverse generations, professions, and successful paths in various fields.
A year later, in 2022, the club signed its first major sponsorship agreement with “Next Consult,” a company owned by one of the club’s future founders.
Sporting success in various competitions, classes, and racing formats soon followed as club crews became increasingly active participants.
Naturally, this eventually led to the formal establishment of “Sofia Sail Yacht Club” in March 2023 by 20 founding members.
During the last two seasons, the club’s racing activities have been focused primarily in neighboring Greece, where the club now has the opportunity to operate two racing yachts.
In 2024, a unique sail design and manufacturing loft for Bulgaria was established in Sofia — an impressive business venture created by another prominent member of the team. The club also develops complementary activities there related to prototyping and testing high-tech racing sails.
The “Windsurf” section was founded in 2025, when some of the most prominent windsurf competitors in Bulgaria joined the club together with their coach. They brought additional energy and numerous sporting achievements to the club’s growing collection of successes.