Sports
IndyCar adds Barcelona race for 2027, bringing Alex Palou close to home
IndyCar plans to race at Spain’s Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in July 2027, its first European event since 2007. Five-time champion Alex Palou, who grew up less than 15 miles from the track, is expected to be a central figure in promoting the race.
IndyCar will race in Barcelona in July 2027, returning to Europe for the first time in 20 years and staging its first event outside North America since 2013.
The race is set for the 2.9-mile Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, a road course that opened in 1991 and hosts Formula One and other major motorsports events. The track is less than 15 miles from Sant Antoni de Vilamajor, where five-time IndyCar champion Alex Palou grew up.
Palou is expected to help promote the event. The Catalan government’s calendar listed a presentation of the IndyCar race at the circuit, led by regional president Salvador Illa and attended by series owner Penske Entertainment CEO Mark Miles and other Catalan officials. The event’s agenda also included a tribute to Palou.
IndyCar last raced beyond North America on May 5, 2013, when James Hinchcliffe won on the streets of São Paulo, Brazil. The series’ most recent European race was a Champ Car event in Assen, Netherlands, on Sept. 2, 2007, before Champ Car merged with IndyCar the following year.
The Barcelona addition extends a schedule that has expanded in recent seasons. IndyCar added street races in Arlington, Texas; Markham, Ontario; and Washington, D.C., in 2026. Arlington and Markham are due back in 2027. The series had also discussed races in several Latin American countries, but those plans had not previously resulted in events.