The deal and the circuit

Formula 1 announced on Tuesday, 13 October, a 10-year agreement under which an African Grand Prix, presented by Visit Rwanda, will join the calendar from the early 2030s. The race will be held at a purpose-built track in Bugesera, about 40 km south of Kigali, beside a new international airport that is still under construction. F1 expects the circuit to be finished early in the next decade, and the first race will only take place once it is complete. The track is being designed to FIA Grade 1 standards and sits inside a wider development programme led by the Rwanda Development Board, covering sport, tourism, infrastructure and commerce. F1 said the venue will also work as a year-round destination for motorsport events, conferences and shows.

Milestones in Formula 1's return to Africa
  1. Morocco stages a race outside Casablanca
  2. Last F1 race in Africa at Kyalami in South Africa
  3. F1 announces a 10-year deal for a Rwanda Grand Prix
  4. First Rwanda race planned once the Bugesera circuit is complete

Why Africa, and why now

Rwanda will be the third African country to host a championship round, after Morocco, which staged a race outside Casablanca in 1958. The last Formula 1 race on the continent was the South African Grand Prix at Kyalami in 1993. Rwandan President Paul Kagame announced the country's bid before the deal was signed, and at a press conference in Kigali he appeared alongside F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali and FIA head Mohammed Ben Sulayem. Domenicali described the day in direct terms.

Today is a landmark moment for Formula One.

— Stefano Domenicali

Domenicali also argued that the deal was about much more than hosting one race, pointing to tourism and investment as the wider benefits. F1 said nearly 60% of fans in key sub-Saharan markets are under 35, and Domenicali put the continent's F1 audience at more than 100 million people.

Lewis Hamilton and the push for Africa

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, now 41 and racing for Ferrari, has repeatedly said the time is right for a race in Africa and has pushed for one. He told reporters in Singapore that the continent is the one where F1 does not race and that there should be no reason for that.

I've always said that we need to have a Grand Prix in Africa.

— Lewis Hamilton

South Africa has also been keen to host a race in Cape Town or at Kyalami, and sports minister Gayton Mackenzie has said that this could still be possible.

Criticism over Rwanda's role

Not all reaction has been celebratory. The United Nations has accused the Rwandan government of backing the M23 rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Amnesty International has called the race a 'sportswashing prize'. Rwandan authorities deny giving the group financial or military support and say their measures were aimed at protecting Rwandan territory. F1 says it believes sport can be a positive force for good and that the project is meant to leave a lasting legacy through tourism, investment and local talent.

Calendar and what comes next

No start date has been set because the circuit does not yet exist. The 2027 calendar already has 24 races, so an existing round would probably have to drop off to make room for Rwanda, according to analysis of the announcement. Fans and commentators are split on whether Rwanda should host the race, even as most agree that a race in Africa is overdue. The next concrete milestone is the completion of the Bugesera track, which F1 expects early in the next decade.