The 24 Hours of Le Mans (French: 24 Heures du Mans; French pronunciation: [vɛ̃t.katʁ‿œʁ dy mɑ̃]) is an endurance sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. First run in 1923, it is the oldest active endurance racing event in the world and is widely considered one of the world's most prestigious races. It is part of two informal "Triple Crown" series: the Triple Crown of Motorsport (with the F1 Monaco Grand Prix and the Indianapolis 500) and the Triple Crown of endurance racing (with the Florida-based 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring).
Unlike fixed-distance races whose winner is determined by minimum time, the 24 Hours of Le Mans is won by the car that covers the greatest distance in 24 hours. The cars on this track are able to achieve speeds of 366 km/h (227 mph), and reached 407 km/h (253 mph) on the main straight in 1988 – instigating the addition of more chicanes to the track to reduce speed reached. Racing teams must balance the demands of speed with the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without mechanical failure. The race is organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). It is held on the Circuit de la Sarthe, composed of closed public roads and dedicated sections of a racing track.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans was often part of the World Sportscar Championship from 1953 until that series' final season in 1992. In 2011, it was a part of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. Since 2012, the race has been a part of the FIA World Endurance Championship. A 10-hour American version of the race, called Petit Le Mans, has been held annually since 1998.
The most recent running of the event, the 94th 24 Heures du Mans, ran from 13 to 14 June 2026.
Launched when Grand Prix motor racing was the dominant form of motorsport throughout Europe, Le Mans was designed to present a different test. Instead of focusing on the ability of a car company to build the fastest machines, the 24 Hours of Le Mans would concentrate on the ability of manufacturers to build sporty yet reliable cars. This encouraged innovation in producing reliable and fuel-efficient vehicles, because endurance racing requires cars that last and spend as little time in the pits as possible.
At the same time, the layout of the track required cars with better aerodynamics and stability at high speeds. While this was shared with Grand Prix racing, few tracks in Europe had straights of a length comparable to the Ligne droite des Hunaudières, often referred to as Mulsanne Straight after the village it leads to.
The oil crisis in the early 1970s led organizers to adopt a fuel economy formula known as Group C that limited the amount of fuel each car was allowed. Although it was later abandoned, fuel economy remains important as new fuel sources reduce the time spent during pit stops. Such technological innovations have had a trickle-down effect and can be incorporated into consumer cars. This has also led to faster and more exotic supercars as manufacturers seek to develop faster road cars in order to develop them into even faster GT cars.
In the 2000s, hybrid systems (flywheel, super-capacitor, battery coupled with both petrol and diesel) have been championed in the Le Mans prototype category as rules have been changed to their benefit and to further push efficiency.
The race is held in mid-June, near the summer solstice, meaning the shortest night and very hot conditions for drivers, particularly in closed vehicles with poor ventilation. Rainy weather is common. The race begins in mid-afternoon and finishes the following day at the same hour the race started the previous day. The 2025 race attracted 332,000 spectators.
Modern competitors often cover well over 5,000 km (3,110 mi). The record is 2010's 5,410 km (3,360 mi), more than six times the length of the Indianapolis 500 (500 mi or 805 km), or about 18 times longer than a Formula One Grand Prix. Drivers and their teams strive for speed and avoiding mechanical damage, as well as managing the cars' consumables – primarily fuel, tires, and braking materials. It also tests endurance, with drivers frequently racing for over two hours before a relief driver can take over during a pit stop while eating and resting. Current regulations mandate that three drivers share each competing vehicle, with individual limits of driving no more than 4 hours in a 6-hour period, and no more than 14 hours total.
Competing teams race in groups called "classes", or cars of similar specification, while competing simultaneously for outright placing amongst all classes. Originally, the race showcased cars as they were sold to the general public, then called "Sports Cars", in contrast with the specialised racing cars used in Grand Prix motor racing. Over time, the competing vehicles evolved away from their publicly available road car roots. Today, the race comprises three classes: the purpose-built Sports prototypes which are also known as "hypercar" and are the highest level in sports car racing, Le Mans Prototypes (LMP) and the production-based Grand Touring (GT) cars similar to sports cars sold to the public which are based on road-going models and therefore, in general, are not as fast as Sports prototypes. These are further broken down into: Hypercar (LMH or LMDh), LMP2 and LMGT3 (GT cars).
Competing teams have had a wide variety of organizations, ranging from competition departments of road car manufacturers (eager to prove the supremacy of their products) to professional motor racing teams (representing their commercial backers, some of which are also car manufacturers who want to win without paying for their own teams) to amateur teams (racing as much to compete in the famous race as to claim victory for their commercial partners).
The race was part of the World Sportscar Championship every year from its inception in 1953 until its demise in 1992, except during the 1956, 1975–1979 and 1989–1990 seasons. In 2011, the race was part of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, and since 2012 it has been part of the FIA World Endurance Championship. However, winning Le Mans is often considered to be more important than winning the championship itself.
The race is also known as a leg of the informal Triple Crown of Motorsport which links Formula One, IndyCar, and sports car racing to represent a career achievement for drivers. Additionally, it is seen as a leg of the Triple Crown of endurance racing, which links the three largest sports car races together, with the 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring forming the other legs. Since 1998, an endurance race called "Petit Le Mans" has been held every year as a 10-hour American version of the Le Mans 24 Hours. From 1999 to 2013, Petit Le Mans was part of the American Le Mans Series along with the 12 Hours of Sebring. Since 2014, the IMSA SportsCar Championship (a merger of ALMS and the Rolex Sports Car Series) has held all four major American endurance classics, which teams can use to prepare for racing at Le Mans.
Since 2019, 62 cars enter each race. Up until recently, each car was required to have at least two seats. However, rules were changed which meant cars only need to have space to accommodate a second seat in the cockpit rather than the seat itself. Two doors are allowed; open-cockpit cars do not require doors. Since 2014, all cars in the premier LMP1 category must have a roof for safety; open-cockpit cars are only permitted in the slightly slower LMP2 category. Since 2017, all prototype cars—Hypercar or LMP2—must have closed cockpits.
Although all cars compete at the same time, as of 2021, there are separate classes. A prize is awarded to the winner of each class and the overall winner. The number of classes has varied over the years, but there are now three: Hypercar, LMP2, and LMGT3.
Successor to the Le Mans Prototype 1 (LMP1) is the custom-built Hypercar (LMH or LMDh) class. It is the top class and debuted in 2021. The new technical regulations are intended to prevent cost escalations while enabling greater variety in technical approaches and car aesthetics.