Race within the rules
This page explains what governing bodies, regulators, standards bodies and researchers publish. It is not a substitute for your class's rule book, a track's safety rules, the race director or the makers' instructions.
How to read these numbers
Every figure below is the named source's own statement, with its date. They count different things (members, clubs, nations, entries) at different times, and some are a body describing itself. None is an independent count, and they are not combined into a total. Wikipedia says competitive RC car racing grew sharply in the 1980s; no figure for that growth was found in the sources read.
Members and clubs
| Body | Figure | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| ROAR (United States and Canada) | Over 4,500 members, ranging in age from under 7 to over 70 | ROAR's About page, copyright 2026 |
| ROAR | About 200 clubs in the US and Canada sanctioned by ROAR | ROAR's About page, copyright 2026; Wikipedia repeats 200 clubs without a date |
No dated membership total was found for EFRA's individual drivers, the BRCA, FEMCA, AARCMCC or IFMAR as a whole.
Nations behind the blocs
Counts of member nations disagree, and each version is given with its source:
- IFMAR: Wikipedia says the four blocs represent 45 member nations with full voting rights; a search summary of another source gave 42. Neither figure was found on an IFMAR page.
- FEMCA: Red RC, a trade publication, describes FEMCA as representing 15 nations in Asia and Australasia (17 November 2025, and again on 19 May 2026); Wikipedia's member table lists 16.
- FAMAR: Wikipedia's FAMAR article lists 16 member countries.
The blocs themselves are described on IFMAR and the blocs.
Field sizes set by rule
Rule books cap how many drivers an event can take. These are limits, not counts of who actually entered.
| Event | Cap | Rule |
|---|---|---|
| IFMAR 1/8 IC off-road World Championship | 180 drivers | IFMAR 1/8 IC off-road rules 2024, 3.0.a |
| EFRA European Championships and Grands Prix, 1/12 | 100 entrants | EFRA Handbook 2026, Appendix 3, A.7.2.4 |
| EFRA, 1/10 off-road | 130 entrants, up to 150 if timetable and facilities allow | Same |
| EFRA, 1/10 touring car Modified and 13.5T | Up to 150 entrants | Same |
| ROAR Nationals, electric off-road | 30 qualifying heats of at most 10 cars | ROAR National Guidelines rev. 13 October 2026, 13.3.2 |
| ROAR Nationals, electric on-road | 25 qualifying heats of at most 10 cars | Same, 13.3 |
| BRCA Academy event | 32 places | BRCA Academy page |
ROAR's guidelines also allow a National class with fewer than 15 entries at the cut-off to be cancelled (13.9). A search summary of Red RC coverage says FEMCA limited its 2025 1:8 off-road championship to 150 drivers; the article was not identified, so that is unconfirmed.
Reported entries at 2026 championships
Trade press has reported entry numbers for some 2026 events. Each is the publication's report, not the organiser's published entry list.
- IFMAR 1:10 nitro touring car World Championship, Gubbio, Italy (September 2026): Red RC reported on 6 August 2026 that IFMAR had published an entry of 129 drivers from 21 countries. Red RC's report of 11 September 2026 says 52 of 114 starters remained after the 1/16 finals. The two figures differ, and neither report explains the gap.
- FEMCA 1:8 Offroad Asian Championship, Malaysia (2026): Red RC (31 August 2026) reported 49 drivers.
What is missing
No dated participation figure was found for EFRA's drivers, the BRCA, FEMCA, AARCMCC or IFMAR overall, and no survey of RC racers by a researcher or statistics agency appeared in the research. The figures on this page should be read as snapshots that each body or publication chose to state. How newcomers join a body is on how people learn.
Sources
- ROAR, About page (2026)
- Wikipedia, Remotely Operated Auto Racers (secondary)
- Wikipedia, International Federation of Model Auto Racing (secondary)
- Wikipedia, Far East Model Car Association (secondary)
- Red RC, FEMCA GT Asia Championship award (17 November 2025)
- Red RC, FEMCA report (19 May 2026)
- Wikipedia, FAMAR (secondary)
- IFMAR 1/8th I.C. Off-Road Racing and Technical Rules, World Championship 2024 (amended March 2024)
- EFRA Handbook 2026, Appendix 3 (electric cars), v4 (June 2026)
- ROAR, Appendix C: National Guidelines for National Race Management Team Events (revised 13 October 2026)
- BRCA, BRCA Academy
- Red RC, racing news listing, page 19 (as read 30 October 2026)
- Red RC, racing news listing, page 12 (as read 30 October 2026)
- Red RC, FEMCA 1:8 Offroad Asian Championship (31 August 2026)
- Red RC, FEMCA coverage (search-result summary only)
- Wikipedia, Radio-controlled car (secondary)