Drone racing could be South Africa’s next big sport

Drone racing might be South Africa’s latest national sport, that’s at least if Drone Racing Africa has anything to say about it.

DRA is the “ first fully funded drone racing league and series in Africa” geared toward promoting and growing the popular sport among all ages and genders

Internationally, drone competitions and drone culture has become more prevalent an ingrained in society. Events such as Dubai’s World Drone Grand Prix, and Hawaii’s Drone World Championships are all pushing the awareness and intrigue of the sport.

Now, Africa will be getting a taste of that action.

Drone racing, and consumer drones, have been slowly gaining popularity across the world

“The massive growth potential for this sport in Africa impacts numerous industries including education, technology, FMCG and communications,” explains DRA’s CEO Simon Robinson.

“For individuals, there are undeniable career prospects so it’s an incredibly appealing sport.”

The sport itself focuses on pilot skill as they navigate their drones through three-dimensional courses by using first-person view (effectively VR) googles as their eyes. If it sounds cool, that’s largely because it is.

Drone Racing Africa will also offer two-day courses to those interested in learning about the sport, and will hope to launch its programme in eastern and western sub-Saharan Africa in the future.

Feature image: DRA/Goosebump Productions