Oracle Team USA will have to pay a fine of just over $15,000 and will also lose five days of practice time for the America's Cup.
The ruling was made by a group of international sailing experts but sailing fans say spying is nothing new -- teams often keep an eye on each other leading up to the America's Cup.
Oracle had another setback in the summer when one of its racing boats wrecked.
The cup races start this summer on San Francisco Bay.
