Race of Champions was originally conceived as the ultimate shoot-out between the best international rally stars. The Race of Champions is an international motorsport event held at the end of each year, featuring national teams consisting of racing and rally drivers. The race was organized in 1988 by Michèle Mouton and Fredrik Johnson. Originally it was organized in memory of Henri Toivonen and Sergio Cresto.

Every year has featured an individual champion, and many have featured other contests. The top individual wins the Henri Toivonen Memorial trophy and given the title, Champion of Champions.

With experts from other disciplines have given the rally boys more than just a run for their money over the years. They include MotoGP's Valentino Rossi, six-time Le Mans 24 Hours winner Tom Kristensen, four-time NASCAR Champ Jeff Gordon and seven-time F1 world champion Michael Schumacher, four-time WRC champion Sébastien Loeb and four-time Champ Car Champion Sebastien Bourdais

The Nations Cup was added in 1999. Each nation fields one rally driver and one circuit racer. The second driver often comes from the World Rally Championship, Formula 1, NASCAR, CCWS, IRL, Cart, DTM, LeMans or Moto GP.

After three years based at the Stade de France in Paris, it was announced on 17 December 2006 that the 2007 event would be held at the new Wembley Stadium in London.