The Formule 40 was created in 1985 by the French Sailing Federation to foster multihull development, which was booming after Mike Birch's win in the first Route du Rhum in 1978, and to bring new skippers through. Its fairly simple rule gave designers wide freedom to build 40-foot catamarans or trimarans on a relatively modest budget.
Events were mostly coastal races known as Grands Prix, plus a few offshore races such as the Multi-Figaro. The class drew established sailors like Philippe Poupon, Yvon Fauconnier and Loïck Peyron, and saw young talents emerge, including Jean Le Cam, Christophe Auguin, Roland Jourdain and Michel Desjoyeaux.
Competing with 60-foot multihulls and hit by rising budgets, the class lost its appeal in the late 1980s and disappeared in 1989.
