Milei meets FIA president to push Argentina's F1 return after 27-year absence

Argentine president Javier Milei met FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem in Buenos Aires this week to formally discuss bringing Formula 1 back to the country for the first time since 1998, with the renewed push fuelled in large part by the rise of Alpine driver Franco Colapinto.

Argentina last hosted a grand prix at the Autodromo Oscar y Juan Galvez 27 years ago. That circuit is currently undergoing the largest renovation in its history — a $150 million project that is 60 per cent complete and includes a brand-new pit building, a remodelled layout, and an extension that stretches the track from 4.3 to 4.87 kilometres specifically with F1 requirements in mind. When finished, the venue is expected to hold more than 150,000 spectators.

“We have the tradition, we have the drivers, and we are now regaining the institutional credibility that these categories demand before a country is chosen,” Milei said. “We have absolutely everything. It is time to go full throttle in this direction. We want to see Colapinto back in the country.”

Buenos Aires head of government Jorge Macri echoed the ambition, describing the renovation as a deliberate bid to meet F1’s technical standards and turn the circuit into “an icon of Buenos Aires on the world stage.”

Ben Sulayem, who was in the country for the FIA’s American Congress, offered measured encouragement after inspecting the circuit. “Can Argentina organise F1? Yes. Do they deserve it? I would say yes,” he told reporters. However, he was candid about the structural obstacles. “We have 24 grands prix in the calendar. We can go to 25, but that is extremely difficult. It will be on the officials, on the drivers. So, to us, it’s a matter of a calendar. It’s a matter of a business plan for five years minimum.”

The FIA president acknowledged that the Argentine government is “serious” in its intentions and pledged to relay that message to Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali, noting that the circuit’s design by prominent F1 track architect Hermann Tilke was itself a signal of credibility.

Colapinto, who made his F1 debut with Williams last season before moving to Alpine, has ignited widespread enthusiasm for the sport across Argentina. He took part in a show run in the country earlier this year, drawing large crowds. Whether that passion translates into a race on the official calendar remains a question of commercial negotiation and scheduling rather than political will alone.