Ireland to hold World Rally Championship

The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are to co-host the World Rally Championship next year with three days of racing in the border counties, it was revealed today.

A round of the hair-raising motorsport will be held on November 18-20, 2007 bringing in around €46m to the economies of the North and the Republic of Ireland.

Routes have yet to be finalised but it will be a cross-border event.

Max Mosley, president of motorsport’s world governing body the Federation International de l’Automobile (FIA) was full of praise for the Irish event and said he was pleased to welcome Ireland to the championship.

“Your team worked hard in their bid and set very high standards. Rally Ireland will bring many new and unique features to the championship including being the first round to run competitive stages cross border,” he said.

The success is the culmination of 18 months work by Failte Ireland and the Northern Ireland Events Company.

John O’Donoghue, Minister of Arts, Sport & Tourism, said: “This is a wonderful success for Irish motorsport and Irish sport in general and all the more so as it is a cross-border initiative.

“The WRC has an annual TV viewership of more than 800 million, so the images of Ireland shown abroad will be of great benefit to the tourism industry.”

Peter Hain MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, said he was similarly delighted with the decision.

“As a motorsport fan, I am delighted with this decision made by Max Mosley and the FIA,” the MP said.

“Having seen at close hand the impact that Rally Ireland has made to date, I am excited by what hosting a full WRC round will be able to contribute to the economy and the development of social cohesion.”

The WRC is run on all types of surfaces including snow, gravel, tarmac and ice.

The season has 16 rounds and begins with the historic Monte Carlo rally.

The championship visits countries as diverse as Argentina, New Zealand, Japan and Sweden.