LONDON , England ( CNN ) -- The court battle may finally be over , but there is still a great mystery hanging over the next America 's Cup event : What will the holders use to defend the trophy ? America 's Cup team Oracle has trialed a trimaran which it revealed in September 2008 . Established in 1851 , the America 's Cup is the oldest active trophy of any sport and by far the most prestigious match race sailing event in the world . Scheduled for February 2010 , the 33rd edition of the America 's Cup will be contested by the holders -- Swiss syndicate Alinghi , and U.S. challenger Oracle , owned by Larry Ellison . The date follows protracted court battles which saw both teams fighting over the terms of the next event . Last month 's New York Supreme Court ruling which finally decided the terms and date of the regatta also announced that the contest is to be decided in a one-off series in multihull boats . While Oracle revealed a 90 ft trimaran last year , defenders Alinghi are still building their boat for the event -- and they are refusing to give away any secrets about it . CNN 's MainSail show visited the Alinghi base in Switzerland to try to catch a glimpse of the mystery vessel -- but they came no closer to seeing the boat under construction . MainSail presenter Shirley Robertson only got as far as the compound gates in her quest to see the vessel . Watch video of CNN visiting the Alinghi team base » The team 's design co-coordinator , Grant Simms , told CNN that the design would not be revealed until the latest possible point . `` It 's quite unusual and we are trying to keep it a secret as long as we can . `` We are hoping to stop our opponents from seeing it and reacting to it , '' he said . The design of the boat is generally a crucial part of any America 's Cup regatta -- and none more so than this one , where a different type of boat is being introduced . Also , the size and shape of the boat could indicate where the regatta may be held -- something that does n't need to be announced by defenders Alinghi until six months before it is set to begin . The cup holders can set the terms of the next defense , in conjunction with the `` challenger of record '' -- whichever team signs up as the first challenger . This is important as different locations can have a wide variety of wind strengths and sea swells , which can suit varying sizes of boat and types of sail . You can watch this month 's MainSail show in full on CNN International or on the MainSail Web site from Thursday 18th June .
Next America 's the America 's Cup to be decided between Alinghi and Oracle in February . Shirley Robertson will be contested in multi-hull boats -- trimarans or catamarans . U.S. team Oracle revealed its design of a one ft boat February . CNN 's MainSail tries to get a sneak preview of the as yet unseen Alinghi boat .