European Tour

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

First introduced in Forza Motorsport 2 as a themed championship series, the European Tour expanded in Forza Horizon 2 with a festival-based road trip across Southern Europe. Subsequent titles deepened the concept, adding historic tracks like Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps and real-world landmarks. The tour has since become a staple, evolving into a multi-stage endurance event that tests both speed and adaptability across the continent's most demanding routes.

In Their Own Story

The new FI, announced in June 2013, was launched on 18 September and the PdL was formally dissolved into the party on 16 November. The day before a group of dissidents (mainly Christian democrats), led by Berlusconi's former protégé Angelino Alfano, had broken away by announcing the foundation of the alternative New Centre-Right (NCD). Another group of PdL members, led by former mayor of Rome Gianni Alemanno, had left the party earlier to form Italy First and would later join Brothers of Italy (FdI). According to Berlusconi, the PdL would become a coalition of centre-right parties, including the new FI, Lega Nord (LN), the NCD, the FdI, etc. Among the supporters of the return to FI, the so-called "hawks" and self-proclaimed "loyalists", a leading role was played by Raffaele Fitto, who, despite the common Christian-democratic background, was a long-time rival of Alfano. Loyalists included Antonio Martino, Renato Brunetta, Denis Verdini, Mariastella Gelmini, Mara Carfagna, Daniela Santanchè, Niccolò Ghedini and Daniele Capezzone, while Maurizio Gasparri, Altero Matteoli and Paolo Romani tried to mediate, but finally joined the new FI. The symbol of FI made its return in the 2013 Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol provincial elections, although in a regional fashion such as "Forza Trentino", or "Forza Alto Adige" (in list with Lega Nord Alto Adige – Südtirol). On 27 November, the Senate approved Berlusconi's expulsion, following the leader's conviction for tax evasion in August, when Berlusconi was sentenced to four years of imprisonment, the last three being automatically pardoned. The day before FI had joined the opposition to Enrico Letta's government, which was still supported by Alfano's NCD instead. The latter voted against Berlusconi's expulsion, but since then completely parted ways from FI.

Reader's Guide

As of the end of December 2013, Berlusconi was set to appoint two vice presidents: Antonio Tajani (European Commissioner and vice president of the European People's Party) and Giovanni Toti (former editor of Studio Aperto and TG4, two news programs of Berlusconi's Mediaset). As a result of the resentment by the party's old guard, notably including Fitto, on the alleged appointment of Toti also as coordinator-at-large, Berlusconi appointed him merely "political counselor" to the party. In the 2014 European Parliament election, FI obtained 16.8% of the vote and had 13 MEPs elected, including Toti in the North-West, Elisabetta Gardini in the North-East, Tajani (who had first been elected to the European Parliament in 1994) in the Centre, and most notably Fitto (who garnered more than 180,000 votes in his native Apulia alone) in the South. As a result, Fitto, the strongest backer of Berlusconi's leadership in late 2013, became his main internal challenger by mid 2014. After months of bickering with Berlusconi over the "Nazareno Pact" with Matteo Renzi, leader of the Democratic Party and Prime Minister, in February 2015, Fitto launched his own faction, named "Rebuilders". Fitto's supporters included Capezzone, Maurizio Bianconi, Rocco Palese, Saverio Romano, Cinzia Bonfrisco, Augusto Minzolini and most Apulian MPs. In September 2014, FI was admitted into the European People's Party (EPP), inheriting the PdL's membership.

Did You Know?

• The European Tour in Forza Horizon 2 featured only static weather conditions; dynamic weather was introduced in Forza Horizon 3.
• The Nürburgring Nordschleife is a staple of the European Tour, often featured as the final 'boss' track in the campaign.
• Forza Motorsport 7 did not have a dedicated 'European Tour' campaign mode; night racing at Le Mans was available in free play but not as a specific tour event.
• The tour's 'Touring Car' class restrictions are inspired by real-world European touring car championships like the DTM and BTCC.
• Forza Horizon 4's 'Fortune Island' expansion added a fictional European-inspired rally route to the tour's legacy.