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The Croatia Rally will not be on the calendar of the WRC World Rally Championship next year, so at least for now, after four years of holding Croatia, it will remain without the WRC.
The Croatia Rally next season will exceptionally not be on the calendar of the World WRC Rally Championship, since the organizer was not issued adequate local guarantees by the given deadline, which is why the WRC Promoter decided to hold the world rally races in 2025 in Saudi Arabia, Paraguay and the Canary Islands. according to the organizers of WRC Croatia.
The president of the organizing committee of Croatia Rally explains the reasons for not being included in the calendar for the 2025 season Daniel Shashkin:
"After the successful WRC Croatia Rally 2023, we were offered a new, three-year contract for the period from 2025 to 2027. For its signing and the continuation of the WRC rally competition in Croatia, we tried to obtain all the necessary documentation, specifically guarantees from local institutions, but unfortunately we have not been able to obtain everything until today. At the moment, we see as the only realistic option the possibility of being included in the calendar of the European Rally Championship in 2025, and then returning to the WRC in the seasons of 2026 and 2027. Of course, the next years too - 2026 and 2027, depend on the guarantees of certain institutions and we hope that they will be issued to us in the near future. Hereby I would like to thank all partners who stand by us. The support of the City of Zagreb, which confirmed the three-year support for the WRC project in a timely manner by the timely decision of the City Assembly, is extremely useful for us in the current negotiations. I can assure you that the story of Croatia Rally does not end here, but the institutions will have to react quickly. We do not want to be without the WRC permanently, and there are many interested parties, in three countries next year the World Championship will be held for the first time. Therefore, it is already necessary to sign a contract with the WRC Promoter and the FIA for the 2026 and 2027 seasons, and we cannot sign the contract without guarantees from these institutions. The pressure on the WRC Promoter and the FIA is great, there are only 14 countries in the calendar, and there are significantly more interested parties".
Croatia was left without the WRC Croatia Rally for next year, but there is still hope that it will return to the calendar for 2026 and 2027.
In 2022, the WRC Croatia Rally "brought Croatian tourism" over 105 million euros, with more than 310 spectators watching speed tests on Croatian roads. The results of the conducted study reveal that the races were followed live 310.000 spectators, which was strongly reflected in the increased number of overnight stays by tourists in the area of the counties that hosted speed exams.
It is estimated that the WRC Croatia Rally in 2022 generated up to 170 overnight stays, with a positive effect on the occupancy of accommodation facilities in Varaždin, Krapina-Zagorje, Zagreb, Karlovac and Primorje-Gorski County, as well as in the City of Zagreb.
The results are professional studies "Socio-economic impacts of WRC Rally Croatia 2022 on the area of Central Croatia" prepared by the Faculty of Economics, University of Zagreb.
/ / / Last year, the WRC Croatia Rally brought over 105 million euros to Croatian tourism
"We are extremely proud and satisfied with everything done in the past four years, for which we were congratulated by both the FIA and the WRC Promoter. The economic and marketing benefits for Croatia are measured in hundreds of millions of euros, which was confirmed through the socio-economic studies of prof. Ph.D. Oliver Kesar and his team of experts from the Faculty of Economics in Zagreb. The image from Croatia was seen by almost one hundred million viewers a year in 165 countries around the world via TV broadcasts and recordings. In addition to the exceptional promotion of Croatia, all of this brought progress to Croatian motorsport and I am convinced that Croatia Rally can continue to be a flywheel for positive changes in domestic motoring. Our intention is to keep our team together through the European Rally Championship in 2025, because the knowledge gained is invaluable. I hope that we will receive all appropriate guarantees from local institutions very soon and continue with the World Cup from 2026", Shashkin said.
During the WRC Croatia Rally, more than 2000 people took part in its realization. In addition to judges and ushers, there was a large number of volunteers and members of the emergency services. All of them underwent training, especially the emergency services, which can apply the acquired knowledge of rescuing victims from hybrid cars in the event of traffic accidents and the growing group of vehicles on Croatian roads.
Robert Markt, the president of the Croatian Auto and Karting Association additionally pointed out: "For the past four years, we have all enjoyed World Rally Championship races in Croatia. That exceptional experience forever changed the Croatian car and karting sport for the better. We proved to the world and to ourselves that we are capable of organizing even the most demanding races, such as the WRC races. On this occasion, I would like to thank the Government of the Republic of Croatia, the city of Zagreb, as well as other local and regional self-government units, as well as the strongest Croatian companies that have supported this competition in previous years. The 2025 season is upon us, in which, I hope, we will organize a race of the European Rally Championship (ERC), and I hope that soon we will be able to obtain all the necessary guarantees in order to host the WRC in Croatia again in 2026 and 2027. Not a single step in the organization of WRC races was easy, so this one, in which we are reorganizing the entire project, will not be the same either. I believe in the organizing committee of Croatia Rally headed by Daniel Šaškin and Marina Frčka, which has the full support and assistance of the Croatian Auto and Karting Association.".
Photo: WRC Croatia Rally
