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The Race of Champions will return to racing in stadiums in 2025 while making its debut in Oceania. On Wednesday, race organisers announced the 2025 edition will be held at Accor Stadium in Sydney, Australia.
Also known as Stadium Australia or Olympic Stadium, Accor Stadium was built in 1999 for the 2000 Summer Olympics. Since then, the venue has been used for a variety of sporting events with primary focus on rugby, cricket, and both Australian and association football. It is currently the home stadium for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and South Sydney Rabbitohs of the National Rugby League, the New South Wales Waratahs of Super Rugby, and GWS Giants in the Australian Football League, while the Australian national teams in those sports also occasionally play there.
Accor Stadium is no stranger to racing either. In 2002, it hosted the inaugural Speedway Grand Prix of Australia, though it was dropped after just one edition; Marvel Stadium in Melbourne would be the new track location when the race was revived in 2013. That same year, Monster Jam held its maiden Australian event in Sydney.
Other events include concerts and even the occasional American football game.
“We are incredibly excited to bring the Race of Champions to Australia for the first time ever,” said ROC president Fredrik Johnsson. “ROC has always been about pushing drivers to their limits in unique conditions. Australia has a rich motorsport heritage, and we’re looking forward to celebrating that by pitting some of the best Australian drivers against some of the world’s most legendary racing stars in a spectacular showdown in the middle of Accor Stadium.”
ROC had utilised a stadium format from 2004 to 2019, competing at Stade de France (2004–2006), Wembley Stadium (2007–2008), Beijing National Stadium (2009), Merkur Spiel-Arena (2010–2011), Rajamangala Stadium (2012), London Olympic Stadium (2015), Marlins Park (2017), King Fahd International Stadium (2018), and Foro Sol (2019).
After a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the event returned in 2022 at Pite Havsbad in Sweden, where races took place on courses made of snow and ice. In September 2023, ROC announced the end of the Pite Havsbad experiment after two years due to disagreements on the land usage.
Seven-time Supercars Champion Jamie Whincup is the first driver to confirm his entry on the 2025 ROC grid, doing so in tandem with the Sydney announcement. He previously represented Australia in 2012 and 2014 alongside Grand Prix motorcycle legend Mick Doohan. After being eliminated in the group stage in his début, Whincup reached the semifinals of the individual tournament in 2014 where he was knocked out by eventual winner David Coulthard. Team Australia finished second in their group at the 2012 Nations Cup before falling in the semifinals to perennial powerhouse Germany, while they finished at the bottom of their pool in 2014.
“I had a great time competing at the Race of Champions World Finals in Bangkok and Barbados,” Whincup commented. “I’m thrilled to be part of the ROC driver lineup again in 2025, especially with the event being hosted in Sydney. Competing alongside some of the best drivers in the world from so many different racing series is always an incredible challenge and representing Australian motorsport on home soil now that ROC comes to Australia for the first time makes it even more special. I can’t wait to get out there and give it everything for the Aussie fans.”
The 2025 Race of Champions will take place on 7/8 March. Norway is the twice defending Nations Cup victor while Mattias Ekström is the most recent Champion of Champions.
