F1 makes historic announcement with African Grand Prix confirmed

Formula 1 has announced that the African Grand Prix in Rwanda will join the F1 calendar on a 10-year deal in the early 2030s.

The event will be held at a new purpose-built circuit near Bugesera, with F1 returning to the African continent for the first time since 1993.

African Grand Prix to join F1 calendar in early 2030s

Racing in Africa again has long been an objective of Formula 1, with races already scheduled for every other continent on which it is feasible to compete.

Rwanda will become the third African country to host F1 after Morocco and South Africa.

The announcement comes after years of collaboration to ensure that the best plans are in place to ensure the success of the event “for generations to come.”

“Today belongs to Africa,” said His Excellency Paul Kagame, President of the Republic of Rwanda.

“For more than three decades, the world’s premier motorsport championship has raced without this continent, and that changes with this agreement.

“Rwanda is proud to host the Formula 1 African Grand Prix, and to share this moment with more than 100 million fans across Africa, many of them young people who deserve to see the sport at home and to see themselves in it: as engineers, technicians, entrepreneurs and, one day, drivers.

“This ten-year partnership is also an investment in Rwanda’s future.

“The circuit in Bugesera, alongside the new international airport, will bring jobs, skills, tourism and new business to our country and our region for decades to come, because our aim was never a single race weekend, but a lasting benefit for our people.

“I thank Stefano Domenicali, Formula 1 and Mohammed Ben Sulayem for the work that has brought us to this day.

“We look forward to welcoming the world to Rwanda for the African Grand Prix.”

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Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, who currently completes for Ferrari, had made it his mission to see F1 return to Africa before he retired from the championship and has long been vocal on the topic.

The race will take place on a purpose-built circuit near Bugesera, while a firm run by former Grand Prix Drivers’ Association chairman Alex Wurz will collaborate with Tilke Engineering on the design process.

The track is promised to “work in harmony with the natural landscape”, with elevation changes set to provide an additional challenge for drivers. This was highlighted by a rendering provided during the launch event in Rwanda.

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