F1 in Barcelona and Madrid: why Spain will have two grands prix in 2026

The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya will hold its final Spanish Grand Prix this weekend, but it will not be the last Formula 1 race it hosts.

It’s a potentially confusing scenario, given that the Catalan venue has been the home of the Spanish Grand Prix since 1991 when it joined the F1 calendar.

From next year, however, the Spanish GP title will belong to Madrid, which secured a ten-year contract with F1 to take over the race.

A new street circuit is under construction, marking the return of F1 to the Spanish capital for the first time since 1981 when it raced at Jarama.

So where does that leave Barcelona?

In 2021, about three years before the Madrid contract was announced, the Circuit Barcelona-Catalunya secured a new five-year deal to extend its stay on the F1 calendar until 2026.

In order to boost its chances of a further extension, the circuit bosses have completed several improvements required by F1.

The €50 million (£42m) project has encompassed the improvement of several facilities, including an overhaul of the control tower, the briefing room, the media room, the stewards and timing offices, and the hospitality areas.

The terrace of the pit building was remodelled with the construction of a new roof.

In 2024, the circuit debuted the ‘Rooftop’, a VIP walkway connecting the paddock with the stadium area.

The Rooftop is covered with solar panels — of which the circuit has 1239 — to generate 33% of the total energy currently consumed, all in line with F1’s demands as it seeks to become carbon neutral by 2030.

Ahead of this year’s race, the venue announced that Fernando Alonso had become an ambassador for the circuit, adding a little bit more weight to its cause.

But in the crowded space that is the current Formula 1 calendar, all of that work is not guaranteed to yield the desired result of securing an extension beyond 2026.

As F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali said earlier this year, the demand makes it harder for one single country to host two races.

Domenicali didn’t mention the United States, but it’s widely accepted that the American country plays by its own rules, as evidenced by the three races it currently hosts. For any other country, perhaps with the exemption of China, having two races would be a luxury.

However, Barcelona believes it’s not about the country, but about what the venue has to offer to F1 and its fans.

“I think we all know what Liberty Media is asking for and what F1 is asking for in order to get an F1 grand prix,” Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya CEO Oriol Sagrera told El Mundo Deportivo earlier this year.

“So it has not so much to do with the fact that two grands prix are part of the same country, but what is the proposal from the promoter.

“We are aware of the challenge, we have accepted it and we have equipped ourselves with the tools to offer the best proposal and the best F1 experience worldwide.

“And we are aware that we compete globally, that there are markets that are doing excellently and our ambition is to do the same or better than the rest of the competitors.”

Rotating calendar

Barcelona’s hopes of staying on the schedule don’t rely exclusively on securing an extension of its current deal — at least in its current form — as there exists the possibility that the circuit could be a part of the F1’s rotating system.

Domenicali has hinted the rotation of races could start as early as 2026. Spa, home of the Belgian Grand Prix, was the first circuit to join a rotational calendar, with the event not taking place in 2028 or 2030.