√Geneva motor show cancelled – again – and replaced by Qatar

The first major European motor show of the year has been cancelled for the fourth time in a row, as a replacement emerges in the Middle East.

The historic Geneva motor show has been cancelled for the fourth straight year as organisers shift their focus to a new event in Doha, the capital of Qatar in the Middle East.

The Geneva show opened for the first time in 1905 and had become a permanent fixture on the motoring calendar at the Palexpo convention centre – a rare venue where all the world’s major carmakers could stage their displays under a single roof – before the COVID-19 pandemic.

After three cancellations, including the first just a week ahead of the 2020 show – when government authorities banned gatherings of more than 1000 people in Switzerland – the organisers are switching their efforts from snow to sand.

Geneva show organisers had already developed a plan for twin events — the traditional show in Switzerland and a satellite called the the Geneva International Motor Show Qatar — and are now moving ahead on a single front.

The first event in Qatar will be held in November 2023 – compared to the Geneva event’s usual late February timing.

“Due to the uncertainties in the global economy and geopolitics, as well as the risks related to the development of the pandemic, the organisers have decided to focus exclusively on the planning of the event in Doha in 2023,” said Maurice Turettini, president of the organising foundation, in an official statement.

“We have done everything possible to ensure that we could host GIMS (Geneva International Motor Show) 2023 in Geneva in February. The enhanced event format and project had been very well received. But in the end, the risks overweighed the opportunities.”

“In these uncertain times, many brands are not in a position to commit to participating in a show in Europe in the winter,” said the CEO of the show, Sandro Mesquita, in a statement.

Few details of the Doha event have been made public, although it is scheduled to take place every two years and the format is promised to include driving events.

News of the show follows Qatar’s hosting of the FIFA World Cup for men’s national soccer teams in November and as a growing number of Middle Eastern countries — led by Saudi Arabia, which now hosts Formula One and the Dakar Rally — look to boost their involvement in the motoring world.

“We are now fully focused on organising GIMS in Doha and look forward to confirming the dates and format of this ground-breaking event with our partners at Qatar Tourism shortly,” concluded Mr Mesquita.

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