– The electric experiment has definitively failed: The Scandinavian Touring Car Championship (STCC) will return in 2027 as a GT4 championship. The championship is thus undergoing a similar transformation as the DTM did when switching from Class One to GT3.
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The series, which started in 1996 as the Swedish championship, expanded in 2011 through a merger with the Danish Touring Car Championship to become the Scandinavian championship and attempted a spectacular restart with electric cars in 2023.
However, the first season did not take place because the vehicles were not ready. In 2024, there was indeed a season that showed sporting potential, but at the end of the year, the promoter shut down.
Thus, the championship was canceled again in 2025 because even the Swedish motorsport authority could not act as promoter on such short notice. After that, the series went quiet and did not appear in 2026 either.
Now there is a new series owner consisting of four racetracks: Gelleraasen Arena, Mantorp Park, Ring Knutstorp, and Ljungbyhed Motorbanan. It is led by five-time STCC champion Richard Göransson, who may still be known to some from appearances in the ADAC GT Masters 2011 or various starts at the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring.
Under this new structure, a line is drawn under the electric experiment. The GT4 will be used as a proven platform, which, however, has recently come under criticism due to escalating costs.
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“The interest in the return of the STCC has exceeded our expectations, and thanks to a strong ownership group and a long-term plan, we look confidently to the future. We have been working behind the scenes on this project for over a year, and several teams have already confirmed their participation for 2027,” says Göransson.
The STCC will thus work directly with the SRO in the future. “We are very pleased to start our partnership with the STCC and work together to reestablish GT4 in the Nordic region,” says Stephane Ratel. “The STCC has a unique history and a strong position in Nordic motorsport, and we look forward to a successful partnership.
“GT4 is a class that attracts both young professional talents and experienced, established drivers at national and international levels. We see great potential for this concept together with the STCC in Sweden and throughout the Nordic region.”
Losers in the whole matter include, among others, PWR, who built the previous electric vehicles, and the four teams that participated in the STCC 2024 and could only race for one season with the expensive investment. Mikael Karlsson thus remains the only electric touring car champion in Scandinavia for the time being. In addition, touring car racing continues to lose ground to GT vehicles.
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How well the 1.4 to 1.5-ton GT4 cars, which are thus not a gram lighter than their electric predecessors, will harmonize on the tight tracks in Sweden remains to be seen. The same applies to the acceptance of the new vehicle class by the audience.
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