History: From Corsica to Alsace
The Rallye de France has been part of the FIA World Rally Championship schedule since the inaugural 1973 season.
Held for the first time in 1956, the Tour de Corse has been on the World Rally Championship calendar since its inauguration in 1973, and right up to 2008.
The name “Tour de Corse” refered to the fact that in the early days it was run around the island. The rally is held on asphalt roads, and it is known as the “Ten Thousand Turns Rally” because of the twisty mountain roads.
2010 marked a big change for the French round of the World Rally Championship. After 35 years in Corsica, the Rallye de France settles in the Alsace region on a totally new course.
Alsace is Sebastien Loeb country and it was highly fitting that the French ace secured his seventh world crown on a special stage run through the streets of his home town of Haguenau when the region hosted its first WRC qualifier in October 2010.
In 2011, a dramatic conclusion to Rallye de France Alsace saw French ace Sebastien Ogier, in a factory Citroen DS3 WRC, made the most of team-mate and championship leader Sebastien Loeb’s Leg 1 exit to claim his first victory on home soil. Dani Sordo also starred by finishing second in his MINI John Cooper Works WRC.
In 2012, the crowd was ecstatic when Sébastien Loeb and Daniel Elena won the Rally France-Alsace, securing their ninth consecutive World Rally Champion title and last one, since Sébastien Loeb had announced his partial retirement from WRC ten days before.
Didier Auriol has won the event six times (1988, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995) as well as Sébastien Loeb (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012). The only non-French drivers to win the event more than once are Sandro Munari, Markku Alén and Colin McRae.