The Endurance Cup traces its origins to the Blancpain Endurance Series, founded in 2011 by SRO in collaboration with the RACB. The series was conceived as a professional-grade endurance championship for GT3-specification cars, occupying a space comparable in prestige to the FIA World Endurance Championship for prototype machinery. Its centrepiece from the outset was the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, one of the oldest and most demanding endurance events in European motorsport.
Swiss watchmaker Blancpain served as the primary sponsor from the series' founding through 2019, lending its name to successive rebrands: the Blancpain Endurance Series from 2011 to 2015, and the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup from 2016 to 2019. SRO announced the end of the Blancpain sponsorship arrangement in 2019, and the series adopted the name GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup for the 2020 season, completing its integration into SRO's global GT World Challenge platform.
The Endurance Cup features five rounds per season. Most rounds host three-hour races; the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, the season's flagship, runs around the clock and awards the most points of the year. Cars in non-Pro classes are typically shared by three drivers, with a fourth driver available at Spa for entries not contesting the Pro class.
Strategy in endurance events emphasises consistency, careful management of driver stints, effective teamwork in pit stops, and tyre and fuel conservation over extended periods — a markedly different discipline from the Sprint Cup's shorter, higher-intensity format. The series uses a Balance of Performance system and performance balancing weights to equalise cars from different manufacturers.
Qualifying for Endurance Cup rounds from 2026 follows the same split-session format introduced for Sprint Cup rounds in 2025, with Group A (Silver and Bronze Cup cars) and Group B (Pro and Gold Cup cars) running separate ten-minute segments in each of three qualifying rounds, with aggregate times setting the grid.
The Endurance Cup operates the same four-class structure as the Sprint Cup within a shared field: Pro (no driver restrictions, eligible for the overall championship), Gold Cup (Gold and Silver-rated drivers), Silver Cup (exclusively Silver-rated), and Bronze Cup (amateur-focused). Endurance rounds permit additional driver grades in some classes that are restricted at Sprint rounds, reflecting the longer race distances requiring more drivers.
The series replaced earlier class structures that included GT4 and Supersport categories in its earliest seasons. From 2012, those classes were dropped and the GT3 category was reorganised into professional and gentleman sub-classes. By 2013 grids had grown to 60 cars for regular rounds, reflecting the strong demand for an accessible yet high-quality endurance GT3 championship.
The series originated as the Blancpain Endurance Series in 2011, quickly building a reputation as one of the largest and most competitive GT3 championships in the world, drawing professional factory outfits and ambitious privateer teams alike. Its 24-hour format at Spa attracted manufacturer interest because the event's gruelling conditions and unpredictable weather provided a meaningful test of development work and team preparation.
In 2016, the series was integrated more formally with the Blancpain Sprint Series under the common Blancpain GT Series umbrella, creating a unified championship framework where points from both formats fed into an overall title. Subsidiary classes including the Pro-Am and Am Cups were introduced that year. The Silver Cup followed in 2018.
From 2023, the winner of the Bronze Cup receives an automatic invitation to compete in the LMGT3 class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a pathway that requires a team to contest all ten rounds of the combined series. The class structure further evolved in 2023 with the introduction of the Gold and Bronze Cups and the discontinuation of the Pro-Am Cup.
The Endurance Cup is the prestige half of the GT World Challenge Europe calendar, anchored by the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. For manufacturers, it provides a high-profile proving ground for GT3 machinery and development talent. For amateur drivers, the multi-driver format and tiered class structure offer a pathway to contest world-class endurance events while competing for their own meaningful championship. The combined contributions of Sprint Cup and Endurance Cup points to the overall title make the Endurance Cup an indispensable element for any team or driver aiming at the GT World Challenge Europe's outright honours.