Dakar Rally could return to Algarve after 20 years

The Dakar Rally could roar back into the Algarve in 2027, two decades after the legendary off-road race last passed through the region.

Portugal and Morocco are being considered as possible hosts after organisers confirmed that next year’s Dakar will not take place in Saudi Arabia, where the event has been held since 2020.

According to Lusa, citing a “source close to the process”, one scenario under consideration would see the start and prologue take place in the Algarve, before the rally moves on to stages in Morocco.

Spain has also been mentioned as a possibility, and no final route has yet been announced.

Dakar organiser Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) confirmed on Sunday that the 2027 race would go ahead “in a different territory”, with an announcement on the new location expected within days.

The change was described as an exceptional, one-off decision following “recent developments in the region”.

Saudi Arabia is due to welcome the rally back in 2028 for its 50th running.

Algarve has Dakar history

Should the Algarve plan become reality, it would mark the first Dakar action on Portuguese soil since 2007.

That year, the rally started in Lisbon, with competitors racing south to Portimão on the opening stage before setting off from the Algarve towards Málaga the following day.

Lisbon had also hosted the start in 2006.

A third consecutive Portuguese start was planned for January 2008, with the rally due to link Lisbon with Dakar in Senegal. However, the entire edition was cancelled on the eve of the start following security warnings concerning the route through Mauritania.

The cancellation eventually led to one of the biggest changes in the Dakar’s history, with the event moving to South America in 2009.

It remained there for 11 editions, racing through countries including Argentina, Chile, Peru, Bolivia and Paraguay, before moving to Saudi Arabia in 2020.

A Portugal-Morocco edition in 2027 would therefore take the Dakar back towards its European and African roots for the first time in almost two decades.