Croatia will be absent from the 2025 World Rally Championship calendar, rally organisers have confirmed.
As previously reported, Croatia was tipped to fall off the expected 14-round WRC schedule for next year following the addition of three new events namely the Canary Islands, Paraguay and Saudi Arabia.
The WRC Promoter was in discussions to renew a deal with Croatia and a statement from the rally's organisers confirmed that a new three-year deal was offered.
However, an agreement was unable to be reached to extend Croatia's stay on the calendar since joining in 2021.
"After the successful organisation of the WRC Croatia Rally 2023, we were offered a new three-year contract for the period from 2025 to 2027," said Daniel Saskin, the president of the organising committee of the Croatia Rally in a statement.
"We attempted to secure all the necessary documentation for signing the contract and continuing the WRC competition in Croatia, specifically the guarantees from the local institutions.
"Unfortunately, to this day, we have not been able to obtain all of them completely. At this moment, the only realistic option we see is to be included in the European Rally Championship calendar in 2025, with a return to the WRC in the 2026 and 2027 seasons.
"Of course, the following year's participation - in 2026 and 2027 depends on the guarantees from certain institutions, and we hope they will be issued soon. I would like to thank all the partners who stand by us.
"The support from the City of Zagreb has been extremely valuable in the current negotiations, as the timely decision by the city assembly confirmed a three-year support for the WRC project. I assure you that this is not the end of the story of the Croatia Rally, but institutions will need to act quickly.
"We certainly do not want to permanently lose the WRC, and there are many interested parties. The World Championship will be held in three countries for the first time next year.
"Therefore, it is already necessary to sign a contract with the WRC Promoter and FIA for the 2026 and 2027 seasons, but we cannot sign the contract without the guarantees from these institutions. WRC Promoter and FIA are under extreme pressure, with only 14 countries in the calendar and significantly more interested parties."
After last month's Rally Poland, the WRC confirmed that next year's schedule will grow to 14 rounds. The proposed calendar is now requiring final sign-off from the FIA.
Monte Carlo is set to open the campaign in its traditional January slot, while it has been announced that Saudi Arabia will host the final round, although dates are yet to be revealed.
Poland won't feature as this year's event was a one-off, while Estonia will return in place of Latvia, which is making its WRC debut this weekend after earning a promotion from the ERC schedule.
Sweden, Portugal, Italy (Sardinia), Finland, Greece and the Central European Rally are expected as the other European rounds. They will join five flyaway rounds; Kenya, Paraguay, Chile, Japan and Saudi Arabia.
