Formula 1 will return to Africa for first time since 1993 with deal to host Grand Prix in Rwanda

Rwanda will host a Formula 1 race from “the early 2030s” when the series returns to Africa after about 40 years.

The African Grand Prix will have a 10-year contract and take place at a track in Bugesera, southeast of the capital Kigali, F1 said on Tuesday. The purpose-built track will be ready “early in the next decade.”

“This partnership is long overdue,” Rwandan President Paul Kagame said at a launch event in Kigali. “But it is a success and a milestone for the entire continent, especially for the African fans. Ultimately, what we want is for the African Grand Prix to pave the way for other races to be hosted on the continent.”

Racing in Africa will fulfil a long-held ambition for seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, the only Black driver in F1. The 41-year-old British driver has said he has been “fighting in the background” for years to have a race in Africa.

The last time F1 raced in Africa was the South African Grand Prix in 1993.

“Today is a landmark moment for Formula 1,” F1 President and chief executive Stefano Domenicali said. “With Rwanda joining the calendar from the next decade our sport will race in every inhabited continent, bringing the world championship closer than ever to fans around the globe.

“Africa has always been part of Formula 1’s future, and from the beginning we were determined to return in the right way, with the right partner, a long-term commitment and a clear vision for creating meaningful impact.”

Rwanda aims for challenging circuit and economic gains

Rwanda becomes the first confirmed new host nation for F1 since Qatar and Saudi Arabia joined the schedule in 2021.

The Bugesera circuit will be built near an under-construction airport serving Kigali and will “work in harmony with the natural landscape,” using hills and dips in the landscape to challenge drivers.

Kagame said Rwanda aims to use the race to develop sports infrastructure and tourism and to diversify revenue.

“Look, our country will be watched on the global stage. And this comes with investments and creations of jobs, especially for the youth,” Betty Mukamurenzi, a university IT student in Kigali, told The Associated Press.

Businessman James Ruzindana said that “for businesses, it is a challenge for us to up our game in terms of having the right products that can be consumed by those who are visiting.”

Rwanda deal could bring scrutiny of human rights record

Rwanda has long sought to make a mark in the world of sports but hosting F1 would take that strategy to a new level.

It could also bring scrutiny over human rights concerns.

Under President Kagame, Rwanda has sponsored major European soccer teams and developed a basketball partnership with the NBA, as well as hosting the world cycling championships.

It’s all aimed at promoting a positive image of a country still often known internationally because of the 1994 genocide. Critics have accused Rwanda of “sportswashing” to divert attention from Kagame’s rights record.

Rwanda has faced accusations from the United Nations that it has backed rebels in neighboring Congo, and Congolese officials have condemned its soccer sponsorships.

Rwanda set to outpace South Africa

There have been rival projects to bring F1 back to Africa, with plans in recent years regarding three different potential venues in South Africa and one in Morocco.

South Africa Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture Gayton McKenzie issued a statement last week congratulating Rwanda, even before the decision was official, but still insisted his country “will get F1,” too.

“We are happy for Rwanda’s 2030 F1. They have worked on it longer than SA and deserve it,” McKenzie wrote on X. “Remember though that one country, Italy, has had two F1s a year, and some react like a continent of 55 countries can only get one. SA will get F1, even before 2030.”

There was no mention of South Africa in F1’s statement on Tuesday.

F1 racing in Africa was linked to apartheid

Many of F1’s previous races in Africa were overshadowed by the policy of apartheid in South Africa.

F1 and its teams faced increasing criticism through the 1970s and 1980s, culminating in some teams boycotting the 1985 race in South Africa, which was facing various international sanctions and boycott campaigns at the time.

As South Africa began to dismantle the system of racial segregation and oppression, F1 returned for two more races at the Kyalami circuit in 1992 and 1993, the last of those less than a year before the country’s first democratic elections where millions of Black South Africans were able to vote.

F1 also held a Moroccan Grand Prix in 1958, the only time Morocco was part of the world championship. A project was announced last year to build a track to bring F1 back to the North African nation but there have been few updates since.