The European Sportscar Championship was a name used by several sports car racing championships based in Europe. Initially created in 1970 by the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) as the European 2-Litre Sports Car Championship for Makes, the series increased in popularity and eventually became part of the World Sports Car Championship in 1976 even after a troubled 1975 season. Only two years later, as interest in sports-prototypes faded, the championship was downgraded from World Championship status and a European championship returned once more, only to be cancelled after its sole 1978 season.
A European championship for sports cars was created once more in 1983, now named the European Endurance Championship, and combined several events from the World Endurance Championship with other European rounds. The concept was however not continued the following year.
In 2001 the European Endurance Championship was revived by IMSA for a single season as the European Le Mans Series, then in 2004 it was revived by the ACO as the Le Mans Endurance Series.