Dakar Rally to leave Saudi Arabia in 2027
The organisers are moving the rally for one year because of the deteriorating security situation in the region.
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The Dakar Rally will not be held in Saudi Arabia in January 2027. The international motorsport federation FIA confirmed on Sunday that the race would move to another region; the new location will be announced later.
According to the FIA, the 2027 edition was scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia from 1 to 15 January. The FIA said recent developments in the region had led to the decision to move the rally. The federation said the change would be a one-off.
The rally will go ahead. Organiser Amaury Sport Organisation is working on an alternative route and says it is in contact with competitors, teams and partners. Details of the country or countries where the race will take place have not yet been made public.
Saudi Arabia has hosted the Dakar Rally seven times in a row since 2020. The race has thereby become part of the kingdom's international sports strategy. The FIA says Saudi Arabia will return as host country in 2028 for the fiftieth edition.
The decision comes as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs warns of security risks in Saudi Arabia. The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs advises travel to most of the country only when necessary and warns of drone and missile attacks in several areas.
For Dutch competitors and teams, the move could mean that travel planning, logistics, insurance and preparations need to be reviewed. The sporting consequences cannot yet be assessed while the new route remains unknown.
The FIA has not cited any specific threat against the rally itself. As a result, it remains unclear which specific security assessment was decisive. It is clear, however, that the decision affects an event that has been closely associated with Saudi Arabia since 2020.
Also show the region and a close-up
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The main facts have been directly confirmed by the FIA and supplemented with the current Dutch travel advice. The precise reason within the broader regional security situation and the new location have been presented as uncertain.
- confirmed Dakar 2027 will not be held in Saudi Arabia. — Confirmed by the FIA on 25 October 2026. source
- confirmed The rally will go ahead in 2027 at another location. — The FIA reports that the location will be announced later. source
- confirmed Saudi Arabia will host the Dakar Rally again in 2028. — Explicitly stated in the FIA announcement. source
- confirmed The Netherlands advises travel to most of Saudi Arabia only when necessary. — Mentioned in the current travel advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. source
Editor's note
The move and the return to Saudi Arabia in 2028 have been confirmed by the FIA. The replacement location and the precise security information remain unknown.Sources
- Dakar 2027 will not take place in Saudi Arabia — Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile
- Reisadvies Saoedi-Arabië — Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken
More on this in Dutch media
- Het Parool — „dakar rally”
- Trouw — „dakar rally”
- NRC — „dakar rally”