Saudi Arabia will host a Formula One race next year, a move aimed at boosting tourism, sports and entertainment in the Kingdom, according to reports.
Saudi Arabia announced Thursday it will host the race in November 2021 in the Red Sea city of Jeddah, using scenic roads along the coast. The Red Sea coast is one of the top areas that Saudi authorities are focused on in their drive to boost tourism.
Saudi Arabia joins Bahrain and the UAE as regional destinations for F1 races, which host celebrities, royals, and often include surrounding events for attendees.
As the Saudi Arabia continues ahead with reforms and modernization, the increase in international sporting events creates a greater amount of exposure of the once-closed off Kingdom.
“Motorsports for us is very important,” Prince Khalid bin Sultan al-Faisal, chairman of the Saudi Automobile and Motorcycle Federation, told The Associated Press in an interview Thursday. “We would like to host these events as long as we can because our local people here in Saudi Arabia like to attend these events and be entertained and meet people from all around the world.”
The announcement follows Saudi Arabia’s hosting of a Formula E race in Diriyah, Riyadh, first held as part of the 2018–19 season. It was the first Formula E race to be held in the Middle East.
Saudi Arabia did not say how long its contract with F1 will last, but the country has plans to build a race track in the capital, Riyadh, by 2030. Saudi Aramco, the kingdom’s oil and gas giant, is already a global sponsor of the heavily-sponsored race.
