Dakar 2027 Heads Back to Europe and Africa

It looks like it is happening. The 2027 Dakar Rally is set to leave Saudi Arabia and return to Europe and Africa. Organiser ASO told the teams on Monday 19 October that the 49th edition will not run in Saudi Arabia because of the security situation in the Middle East, as reported by Road2Rally.

The plan is a start in Europe, then the whole Dakar caravan loads onto ferries and crosses the Mediterranean to Africa. That would be the first time the rally has raced on African soil since 2007, when it ran from Lisbon all the way to Dakar, according to El Periódico de Aragón.

What we know so far

• Scrutineering: 6 to 8 January 2027, in Europe
• Prologue: Saturday 9 January 2027, in Europe
• Into Africa: ferry crossing, first stage Sunday 10 January
• Rest day: Saturday 16 January
• Finish: Friday 22 January 2027
• Format: prologue plus 12 stages, with a marathon-style stage
• Distance: around 4,000 to 4,300 km of special stages

Those dates come from what teams were told on the call with ASO, as reported by TimeOut Racing and Road2Rally. The original plan was 1 to 15 January in Saudi Arabia with 13 stages and more than 5,300 km of timed sections, so the new route is shorter but still a full two-week Dakar, says RMC Sport.

Spain or Portugal, then Morocco

Spain and Portugal are the two candidates to host scrutineering, the prologue and maybe even the first stage, according to Relevo. Lisbon, Barcelona and the beach at Castelldefels have all sent the Dakar off before, so there is plenty of history to draw on, as El Nacional points out.

After that it is Morocco, and more specifically the big dunes around Merzouga, which several reports, including Motor16, name as the heart of the new route. Catalan paper ARA even says the Moroccan part of the route is already locked in. Whether the rally goes any further into Africa than Morocco is still unclear.

This is what the bike class lives for: soft sand, steep dunes and nowhere to hide. Photo: Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 2025 Dakar Rally press kit.

Why this matters for the bikes

For the motorcycle class this could be a big shift. Morocco means the Erg Chebbi dunes, rocky pistes, fast tracks and proper navigation. That is the kind of terrain where a rider's head counts as much as their right wrist, and where one wrong heading can cost you the rally.

A start in Spain or Portugal is a ride, not a flight. Do not be surprised if a lot of us end up lining the road for the prologue.

The important bit: it is not official yet

ASO has told the teams, but there is no official press release yet. The countries, start city and finish location are still waiting for approval from the governments involved, according to Road2Rally.

The full route reveal is expected on Monday 26 or Tuesday 27 October 2026, says TimeOut Racing. Until then, treat Spain, Portugal and Morocco as the leading plan, not the finished map. Distance figures also vary between reports, from about 4,000 km of special stages up to around 4,900 km in total.

One thing is clear though. After seven editions in Saudi Arabia, the Dakar looks set to head back towards where it all started. For anyone who grew up on the African Dakar, that is pretty special. I will update this post as soon as ASO publishes the official route.

Photos: Red Bull KTM Factory Racing, 2025 Dakar Rally press kit, used for editorial purposes.