Sport · Rwanda
Rwanda agrees ten-year Formula 1 hosting deal
Formula 1 says an African Grand Prix will be staged in Rwanda from the early 2030s, subject to completion of a new circuit in Bugesera.
Formula 1 plans to return to Africa with a ten-year Rwandan Grand Prix agreement beginning in the early 2030s.
- New Bugesera circuit must be completed first.
- Track needs FIA Grade 1 approval.
- Africa last hosted Formula 1 in 1993.
- No first-race date has been announced.
- South Africa had also sought a race.
What's new
- Formula 1 and Rwanda announced a ten-year agreement.
- The first race is planned for the early 2030s.
- A purpose-built Bugesera circuit must obtain FIA Grade 1 status.
- The event would end Formula 1’s absence from Africa since 1993.
Formula 1 and Rwanda announced on 13 October a ten-year agreement to host the African Grand Prix at a planned circuit in Bugesera, about 40km south of Kigali. The first race is intended for the early 2030s, after the venue is built and approved to FIA Grade 1 standards.234
A return to Africa
The planned Rwandan race would mark Formula 1’s first event in Africa since 1993, when the championship last raced at Kyalami in South Africa. Formula 1 president and chief executive Stefano Domenicali said the agreement would allow the series to race on every inhabited continent.123
Rwandan president Paul Kagame said the deal ended the championship’s absence from the continent of more than three decades. He said Rwanda was honoured to stage the event and celebrate it with an African fan base exceeding 100 million people.12
Circuit still to be completed
The race depends on construction of a new purpose-built track in Bugesera. WurzDesign, led by former Formula 1 driver Alexander Wurz, is to design the circuit; the project must be constructed and homologated at the FIA’s top Grade 1 level before it can host a grand prix.234
Formula 1 has not specified a first-race date or its place on the annual calendar. The venue is planned beside a new international airport and is intended to operate throughout the year for motorsport, other events, conferences and entertainment, according to Formula 1.14
Economic aims and scrutiny
The project has support from Rwanda's government and the Rwanda Development Board. Kagame said the circuit could bring “jobs, skills, tourism and new business” to Rwanda and the wider region, while Domenicali said the agreement could support tourism, investment, skills development and local businesses.124
The announcement is also likely to bring scrutiny from human-rights campaigners. Amnesty International UK’s head of campaigns, Felix Jakens, accused Rwanda of using major sport to improve its image; this is an allegation made by Amnesty, not a finding presented by Formula 1 or Rwanda. The Democratic Republic of Congo has also filed a case against Rwanda at the International Court of Justice, according to the BBC.1
South Africa had also been under consideration for a Formula 1 return. Its sports minister, Gatyon McKenzie, said South Africa would secure a race before 2030, but no agreement was announced in the material available.2
Why it matters
For European readers, the agreement adds a planned new destination to a championship with a global audience and European-based teams, drivers and commercial partners. It also places Rwanda’s proposed event within Formula 1’s wider effort to establish a presence on every inhabited continent, although the timetable depends on a circuit that has yet to be completed and certified.24
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