On 13 October 2026, Formula One and Rwanda announced a 10-year deal to host a grand prix from the early 2030s, in front of a packed BK Arena in Kigali. It will be Africa’s first F1 race since the 1993 South African Grand Prix. The race will be held at a purpose-built circuit in Bugesera, and F1 has not yet announced the inaugural race date. The leaders and voices behind the deal came together at the launch, and several had been championing it for years.
At the centre of the story is Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who formally announced the bid on 13 December 2024, when Rwanda hosted the FIA General Assembly. At the launch he declared “Today belongs to Africa,” and said Rwanda would share the moment with Africa’s 100 million-plus F1 fans, many of them young people who deserve to see themselves in the sport as engineers, technicians, entrepreneurs and, one day, drivers. He made clear that the vision reaches beyond the track, saying the aim was “never a single race weekend,” but lasting benefits for Rwandans in jobs, skills and tourism.
F1 chief executive Stefano Domenicali, who led the sport’s side of the talks, called the agreement “a landmark moment for Formula One.” He said the deal is about much more than hosting a Grand Prix, and F1’s X account highlighted his point that Africa’s more than 100 million fans can now watch a race on their own continent. He also hopes it will open the way for other grands prix on the continent. The experience of other hosts shows what is possible: the Las Vegas Grand Prix generated close to $1.5 billion in overall economic impact. That is a much larger market, but it illustrates the scale of opportunity a race can bring.
FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem added the governing body’s weight to the announcement. At the launch he called the return to Africa “a moment of immense pride” and said it opens a new chapter for the sport. His support dates back to December 2024, when the FIA held its general assembly in Africa for the first time and he praised Rwanda’s growing influence in motorsport.
No driver has argued the case more persistently than Lewis Hamilton, whose comments came before the launch. In August 2024, he said F1 could not keep adding races elsewhere while “continuing to ignore Africa, which the rest of the world just takes from.” In early October 2026, at the Singapore Grand Prix, the seven-time champion said he had been pushing for it in the background and praised Domenicali’s role. His public advocacy gave the project a visibility that officials alone could not have supplied.
Encouragement also came from South Africa, whose own bid centres on Kyalami. When the deal first leaked on 7 October 2026, sports minister Gayton McKenzie said Rwanda had worked on it longer and deserved it, adding “SA will get F1, even before 2030.” On 15 October 2026, President Cyril Ramaphosa posted on X, addressing President Kagame and the Rwandan people and praising the deal as a reflection of Rwanda’s capabilities and the continent’s potential. He said South Africa “shares in the pride” of Rwanda’s preparations, and his message earned praise across the continent for its spirit of unity.
The backers now turn to building what they have promised. The circuit will sit beside the new international airport, and its designers aim to “work in harmony with the natural landscape” and use the area’s elevation changes to create a distinctive racing experience. Rwanda goes into the project with experience, having recently hosted the FIA General Assembly and end-of-season prize-giving gala in Kigali. F1 and Rwanda describe the deal as part of a broader investment programme covering sports, tourism, infrastructure and commercial development. Kagame has promised “There is more coming,” and the people who championed the deal now have the rest of the decade to turn the announcement into a race.
