It seems like an ongoing theme. During every IndyCar season for the past decade or so, there have been rumors that the series is "close" to a new international race, whether that race be in Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, you name it.
Nothing ever happens. Ever. It has become the series' longest-running joke, and it's become somewhat tempting at this point to put out a totally fabricated story each year about the series being close to announcing the Grand Prix of in Reykjavik in Iceland, "per a source close".
Quite frankly, the fact that President Donald J. Trump could literally sign an executive order to bring an IndyCar race to Washington, D.C. before IndyCar's first actual new international race since 2010 just makes it even funnier, for those not perpetually frustrated by the lack of action.
Seriously, though; give Trump, Monumental Sports & Entertainment, Roger Penske, and the rest of Penske Entertainment credit for bringing that whole D.C. deal together, making the 2026 schedule the NTT IndyCar Series' first since 2014 with 18 races, especially after an offseason that saw four races axed from the schedule entirely. Take notes, Stephen A. Smith.
Now back to the international scene, or lack thereof.
We all remember the whole "Pato Who?" saga in August 2024 at the Milwaukee Mile, after ill-advised comments from IndyCar CEO Mark Miles indicated that Pato O'Ward's series-leading popularity was not enough to justify a Mexican race simply because he wasn't showing up on billboards in Monterrey. It's a theory that might have held up in 1985 or thereabouts. But not anymore, and not at any point in the recent past, either.
Even after all the backlash, and with all the focus supposedly placed on getting IndyCar to Mexico thereafter, here we are two years later, and IndyCar's alleged push to land a race at Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez has resulted in nothing.
Heck, even NASCAR made it back to the site of Formula 1's Mexican Grand Prix for the first time since 2008, and its first ever Cup Series race was contested at the track in June 2025.
There is some good news, however. IndyCar does technically have a new international race on the schedule for 2026.
IndyCar has a new international race in 2026
And no, we don't mean the D.C. race simply because D.C. isn't a state, although that would ironically be somewhat fitting when it comes to IndyCar's ongoing struggles to get out of the United States.
The Canada street race, which had been held in Toronto, Ontario at Exhibition Place since 1986 (minus 2008 and then 2020 and 2021 due to COVID-19-related restrictions), has been moved to Markham, Ontario at Markham Centre.
This race, which is scheduled to take place on Sunday, August 16, is set to mark IndyCar's first new international race since IndyCar's first visit to the streets of Sao Paulo, Brazil to kick off the 2010 season. After one of the series' most exciting street race finishes of all-time in 2013, the series hasn't been back.
Since then, IndyCar even had a separate Brazil race fall through. The series was set to open up the 2015 season at Autodromo Internacional Nelson Piquet, but that event was cancelled by the Federal District officials newly elected in the 2014 national elections.
And since that 2013 Brazil race, IndyCar has not visited a foreign country aside from Canada.
In addition to the Sao Paulo race, the 2012 season featured two Canadian races, one in Toronto and the final event in Edmonton at Edmonton International Airport. It was also supposed to feature a race in Qingdao, China, but that race was called off by promoters.
Prior to 2012, IndyCar had visited Japan annually for a race at Twin Ring Motegi. That race was shifted from the oval to the road course in 2011 after the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami damaged the track, and the series hasn't been back to the East Asian country since.
Does IndyCar leadership actually have what it takes to line up a new international race, or will what has seemingly become an annual smoke and mirrors theme continue for yet another season?