Motorsport UK has been in discussions with the WRC Promoter for some time about returning a round of the World Rally Championship to the United Kingdom. The original target was to secure an event in Scotland as early as next year.
Now Aberdeen City Council has moved the process forward. The local authority has approved an agreement that allows it to work with Motorsport UK, paving the way for an official bid to host the rally in Aberdeen and the surrounding area.
“It would be very exciting to bring the prestigious World Rally Championships to the area. There are a lot of rally fans in the region and across the world so it would be a popular event,” council co-leader Ian Yuill said.
The aim is to secure a WRC agreement for the 2027–29 seasons, with stages expected to run across Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire and Moray.
In order to submit the bid, Aberdeenshire Council, Moray Council and the Scottish government must also approve a joint memorandum of understanding. The partners would need to agree on funding and the level of support provided for the event. The costs would be shared between the three councils.
The Aberdeen region already has rally heritage, having hosted the Grampian Forest Rally for several years. For the potential WRC round, the hub of the event would be P&J Live – the indoor arena located on the edge of the city.
P&J Live has a capacity of 15,000 people. The fan zone, service park, media facilities and rally headquarters would all be based inside the venue.
The UK last hosted a round of the World Rally Championship in 2019. Britain’s round was held in Wales between 2000 and 2019.
The last time Scotland featured a full day of WRC stages was during the 1992 RAC Rally.
