{"id":832088,"date":"2026-03-17T16:21:20","date_gmt":"2026-03-17T16:21:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/832088\/"},"modified":"2026-03-17T16:21:20","modified_gmt":"2026-03-17T16:21:20","slug":"what-wrc-return-to-gb-means-for-british-rallying","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/832088\/","title":{"rendered":"What WRC return to GB means for British rallying"},"content":{"rendered":"

Imagine Formula 1 without the British Grand Prix, it’s unthinkable isn\u2019t it? Well, the World Rally Championship without Rally GB is a similar scenario to many.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The WRC without Great Britain just didn\u2019t sit right, so news that Scotland will bring top-tier rallying back to British shores in 2027 has, as you can imagine, been well received and will provide a real shot in the arm for British rallying. The impact on the sport\u2019s profile and ability to unearth new talent cannot be underestimated.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read Also:<\/p>\n

Great Britain is a rallying heartland, dating back to the first RAC Rally in 1932 that would go on to lay the groundwork in establishing rallying as a popular form of motorsport. Over the years the RAC Rally and then Wales Rally GB became a cornerstone event for the WRC and British Motorsport.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no question that Rally GB, the RAC Rally, was always voted by the drivers as one of the best events in the World Championship,\u201d said former driver and M-Sport-Ford team owner and now FIA deputy president for sport Malcolm Wilson at yesterday\u2019s Rally Scotland launch in Aberdeen. \u201cTo now come to Scotland, with some of the best stages in the UK, is fantastic. Not only that, but this is a great platform and a brilliant place to build a base for the future.\u201d<\/p>\n

At its peak, Rally GB was regarded as one of Britain\u2019s most attended sporting events. Who can forget the hundreds of thousands of spectators that ventured out into the Welsh forests to witness Colin McRae wrestle a navy blue Subaru to glory and\u00a0lift that famous gold trophy as Britain\u2019s first world rally champion in 1995.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The mere sight of that famous gold trophy McRae held aloft more than 30 years ago\u00a0again at the Rally Scotland launch rekindled so many happy memories for me personally and I\u2019m sure I\u2019m not the only one. That is sport in a nutshell. It has a real power over emotions and the ability to inspire. For example, \u2018McRae Mania\u2019 further cemented my love for the sport and it’s fair to say it\u2019s one of the reasons I pursued a\u00a0career as a motorsport journalist.<\/p>\n

But I digress. Back in 1995, McRae and Derek Ringer becoming world champions by winning in Great Britain was front and back page news which only turbocharged rallying\u2019s popularity. Certainly, McRae and Richard Burns\u2019 emergence at the top level of the WRC provided a lot of the heavy lifting in building rallying\u2019s profile in Britain. In 2001, when the two went head-to-head for the title, with Burns ultimately coming out on top, creating box office motorsport. It was enough to warrant\u00a0live television\u00a0coverage on the BBC no less.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Robert <\/p>\n

Robert Reid, Luis Moya, Derek Ringer, Colin McRae, Richard Burns and Carlos Sainz, Subaru<\/p>\n

Photo by: Sutton Images<\/p>\n

Granted, that was when rallying was at its peak of popularity in the UK, but it is an example of how the rally created a fanbase that has since been starved of Rally GB action since the loss of government funding resulted in Wales Rally GB dropping off the calendar after 2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The WRC\u2019s absence from the UK has been felt hard. British rally fans have been desperate for its return and there has been little to fill the void\u00a0when\u00a0it comes to inspire the next generation of British rally drivers and fans.<\/p>\n

Those intervening years without Rally GB have been bleak but there have been glimmers of hope. In Wales Rally GB\u2019s absence the Roger Albert Clark Rally has become the UK\u2019s biggest rally and arguably most well attended. This event for historic machinery has rekindled that RAC Rally magic, utilising many of the old stages, and fans have come out in their droves to watch, proving the fanbase is still there.<\/p>\n

\n

\u201cThere\u2019s no question that Rally GB, the RAC Rally, was always voted by the drivers as one of the best events in the World Championship\u201d<\/p>\n

Malcolm Wilson<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Then, in 2024, top-level international rallying returned, with Wales represented on the European Rally Championship calendar through the excellently organised Rali Ceredigion. This rally has certainly helped put GB back on the international rally map again, proving it is possible to generate the funding required to host an international rally, and that the appetite for contemporary rallying still exists.\u00a0<\/p>\n

But Monday 16 March, 2026 will be a day British rally fans will treasure. The WRC is finally\u00a0coming back to the UK next year with an all-new gravel rally in Scotland, based out of Aberdeen. Thanks to the efforts of Motorsport UK and the funding provided by the Scottish Government, Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council, a three-year deal to host a round of the WRC has been agreed, utilising stunning gravel stages.<\/p>\n

A huge\u00a0congratulations\u00a0is in order for those who have contributed to bringing this event to fruition.\u00a0These days, securing government funding is critical to host major motorsport events. For example, in Australia, the Formula 1 and MotoGP Australian Grand Prix, and the former WRC Rally Australia simply don\u2019t happen without millions of dollars of government money.<\/p>\n

In the UK, the F1 British Grand Prix is privately funded and doesn\u2019t receive any financial help from the government, even though the motorsport industry is worth billions of pounds to the economy. So, for the Scottish government to back WRC Rally Scotland is a significant moment. They have invested\u00a0because they have bought into the benefits the WRC can provide.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"WRC <\/p>\n

WRC Rally Scotland launch<\/p>\n

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool<\/p>\n

It is fair to say that the WRC\u2019s current popularity is not at the heights it reached in the 1990s and 2000s, but it remains one of global motorsport\u2019s key players, and is a sleeping giant just waiting to realise its potential again. With the WRC set to welcome new ownership and investment this year, there are plenty of reasons to suggest this giant will rise again.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Experts predict Rally Scotland will generate approximately \u00a380 million to the local economy but its impact will be far more reaching than boosting a local region that has kindly invested in rallying and the WRC. This event has the potential to bring new eyeballs to rallying, be that new fans, future drivers, marshals team bosses, and in general grow the profile of the sport in the UK. From a personal point of view this is worth its weight in gold and way more important than the obvious joy at seeing the world\u2019s best drivers tackling Scotland\u2019s beautiful gravel stages. For British rallying, this could be a real turning point.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There is that old saying; \u2018if you can see it, you can be it\u2019, and the light that Rally Scotland can shine on rallying has real potential to unearth new talent and invigorate the grassroots and national scene.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Harking back to\u00a0the ‘power of sport’ point made earlier, rally fans are created, and future drivers are inspired by moments. In the past, Rally GB produced many moments, such as Carlos Sainz\u2019s agony breaking down a matter of metres from claiming a third world title in 1998, Petter Solberg\u2019s uncontrollable joy at winning the 2003 crown, and more recently, current star Elfyn Evans claiming his first WRC win on home soil in Wales in 2017.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Evans has since led Britain\u2019s hopes on the WRC stage, finishing runner-up on five times in the title race. For many British drivers he is now the icon that is inspiring the next wave of talent.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is very exciting news that a round of the World Rally Championship is coming back to the UK,” said Evans.<\/p>\n

“Having a rally based around Aberdeen is very exciting not only for the sport but definitely for the UK motorsport community. I think it is very important to inspire the next generation. I’m very thankful for everyone involved in the project to make it happen and I\u2019m very excited to be a part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Elfyn <\/p>\n

Elfyn Evans, Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT<\/p>\n

Photo by: Metin Aktas \/ Anadolu via Getty Images<\/p>\n

These unforgettable Rally GB moments from the past capture the imagination of fans and have the power to inspire. And now Rally Scotland can pick up the mantle.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou do need these halo events. It’s fair to say that the national level and everything is, it’s gone on very solidly during this period of time, but you can’t underestimate the influence that bringing a world championship event as to the country in developing our marshals, our officials, our competitors as well, and giving that ambition,\u201d Motorsport UK chairman David Richards told Autosport.<\/p>\n

\u201cWho knows, and we might see another, another Scott come from, in the footsteps of Colin McRae out of Scotland as a result of this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rally Scotland is so much more than just Great Britain hosting a round of the WRC.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We want to hear from you!<\/p>\n

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Take our survey<\/a><\/p>\n

– The Autosport.com Team<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Imagine Formula 1 without the British Grand Prix, it’s unthinkable isn\u2019t it? Well, the World Rally Championship without…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":832089,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5018,3,4],"tags":[748,393,4884,1144,712,16,15,1764,238734,27056],"class_list":{"0":"post-832088","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-britain","8":"category-uk","9":"category-united-kingdom","10":"tag-britain","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-great-britain","13":"tag-northern-ireland","14":"tag-scotland","15":"tag-uk","16":"tag-united-kingdom","17":"tag-wales","18":"tag-what-wrc-return-to-gb-means-for-british-rallying","19":"tag-wrc"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/116245436114738424","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832088","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=832088"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832088\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/832089"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=832088"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=832088"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=832088"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}