The 2027 Dakar Rally will not take place in Saudi Arabia due to ongoing regional security concerns, event organizers announced on Sunday, October 25, 2026. Scheduled for January 1 through January 15, 2027, the endurance race will shift to an alternate territory, according to a statement.
Security Pressures Force a Relocation
Organizers pointed directly to regional instability following the escalation of the conflict between the Houthis in Yemen and Saudi Arabia, which saw a resumption of hostilities in July featuring daily strikes hitting the kingdom. The decision breaks a run of Saudi-hosted rallies that began in 2020. A.S.O., which co-organizes the event alongside the Saudi Motorsport Company, confirmed that the 2027 edition will proceed under its management on a different yet-to-be-disclosed territory.
Possible Routes Point Toward Africa and Europe
Specialized media reports indicate that the favored logistical solution involves a departure from Spain followed by stages in Morocco. Should this routing materialize, it would mark the first time the rally returns to the African continent since 2007. Created in 1979, the rally ran across African terrain before terror threats prompted the cancellation of the 2008 event and forced a subsequent relocation to South America from 2009 to 2019.
๐ฃ OFFICIAL STATEMENT ๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฎ๐ฟ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ณ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ป๐ผ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ธ๐ฒ ๐ฝ๐น๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐๐ฑ๐ถ ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฎ: ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ ๐๐ถ๐น๐น ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ฟ๐ป ๐๐ผ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐ฑ๐ผ๐บ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ด ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฑ๐ฌ๐๐ต ๐ฒ๐ฑ๐ถ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป ๐ธ๐ฆAmaury Sport Organisation (A.S.O.) and Saudiโฆ pic.twitter.com/Y3tL0MEuCR
Broader Motorsport Disruption Across the Middle East
The Dakar relocation mirrors widespread schedule changes across international motorsport triggered by Middle East conflicts. Formula 1 previously cancelled its April grands prix in Saudi Arabia at Jeddah and in Bahrain, later relocating the Bahrain fixture to Malaysia in early October. The Rally of Saudi Arabiaโwhich was slated to serve as the 14th and final round of the World Rally Championship in Jeddah this Novemberโwas cancelled outright without a replacement round. Meanwhile, upcoming events such as the Qatar and Abu Dhabi F1 grands prix remain officially on the calendar alongside the Qatar MotoGP round, though internal debates persist.
The Return to Saudi Arabia Scheduled for 2028
Despite the 2027 detour, organizers confirmed that Saudi Arabia will return as host for the 2028 competition, an event intended to mark the 50th edition of the rally. A separate announcement detailing the precise host country and route for the upcoming January 2027 race is expected in the coming days.
