WRC Confirms Return to America in 2027 After Nearly 40-Years MIA
· Yahoo Sports
The World Rally Championship is finally coming back to the United States.
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After going MIA in 1988 following the demise of Group B, the FIA's premier rally championship will rip through American soil for Rally US, scheduled to run from August 26 through 29, 2027. The new American round will be the 11th stop on the 15-round global calendar-the WRC's largest since 2008-and will be part of the sport's aggressive expansion beyond its traditional stomping grounds in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
The new American event is perhaps expected, given Ford just announced it would be returning to the championship with a new factory effort for the 2028 season. The Blue Oval was an early supporter of the WRC, fielding Escorts and Capris against established European teams at the inaugural 1973 Monte Carlo Rally. Outside of Ford, the other major American automakers have pretty much ignored rally racing,
While rally has never been huge in America, the WRC's return to U.S. soil has been in active discussion for the last five years. Manufacturers like Toyota and Hyundai have been keen to show off their prowess in one of the world's key automotive markets.
While WRC officials have not officially mapped the exact course that will be used, organizers are scouting locations across Tennessee and Kentucky.
Most reports are pointing to Knoxville, Tennessee, serving as the rally center, using many of the technical, tree-lined forest roads that cut through the Appalachian foothills and over state lines into Kentucky.
Tickets and spectator zone details for the August 2027 event are expected to go on sale closer to the race date.
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