Dakar Rally relocating from Saudi Arabia for 2027

Dakar Rally organizer Amaury Sport Organization (A.S.O.) and the Saudi Motorsport Company announced they have jointly decided that Dakar Saudi Arabia 2027, scheduled from Jan. 1-15 next year, will not be held in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia due to ongoing instability in the Middle East.

The organizers said that the Dakar event will still go ahead in a new location to be announced soon. The announcement noted that this decision, was "exceptional and one-off and was taken in close coordination with the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation (SAMF), and with the support of the FIA and the FIM." Saudi Arabia is still scheduled to host Dakar 2028, which will mark the 50th running of the rally.

Saudi Arabia has hosted seven consecutive editions of Dakar since 2020, welcoming competitors from around the world on routes that showcased the Kingdom’s remarkable geographical diversity. Prior to the Saudi races, the Dakar was run in South America from 2009-19, after the original route from Paris, France to Dakar, Senegal – run from 1979-2007 – was abandoned due to ongoing political strife in North Africa.