The FIA World Endurance Championship, abbreviated as WEC, is a world championship for automobile endurance racing organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA).

The series supersedes the ACO's former Intercontinental Le Mans Cup which began in 2010 and is the revival of the World Sportscar Championship which ended after the 1992 season.

Faced with declining manufacturer interest in the LMP1 class after the 2017 season, the FIA commissioned a study into the future regulations of the championship's top category.

[5][6] The Hypercar class first appeared in the 2021 season, with LMH entries from Alpine, Glickenhaus and Toyota.

[8] In 2021, the ACO announced that the series would move away from its two LMGTE categories, following a rapid decline in manufacturer interest.