Dakar Rally returning to Africa after shift to Portugal-Morocco amid conflict

The Dakar Rally in January will start in Portugal and finish in Morocco after being moved from Saudi Arabia because of the Middle East conflict.

Organizers announced the new route on Friday. They canceled the race in Saudi last weekend but reaffirmed it will return to the kingdom in 2028.

The Dakar, the world's biggest off-road race, returns to Africa for the first time in 20 years.

It will run from Jan. 9-23. The Algarve will hold the prologue and first stage and Morocco will hold the other 11 stages, going as south as outside Dakhla with a return north to finish in Marrakech.

Organizers said the route was 7,824 kilometers with 4,341 of those special stages, which was close to recent editions. Each special will range from 350 to 500 kilometers.

The race began in 1979 from Paris to Senegal's capital Dakar. It was canceled at short notice in 2008 over security concerns in North Africa. Since then it has been held in South America and, since 2020, Saudi Arabia.