Citroen have confirmed that Sebastien Loeb and Sebastien Ogier will drive for their factory team in next season's World Rally Championship.

Rising star Ogier, 26, who took his maiden WRC win in Portugal earlier this season, had been linked with a move to Ford for next year but he has agreed a three-year deal to step up to the factory squad from the Citroen Junior Team on a full-time basis.

Loeb, who has won a record six straight world titles and is well on his way to a seventh, did have an option that would have allowed him to leave the team at the end of the season but will instead remain on board for an 11th straight year with the French marque.

Team boss Olivier Quesnel is delighted to have secured the services of the two French drivers, and believes retaining Loeb's services will be vital in developing the new DS3 WRC as the series switches to S2000 regulations, similar to those used in the World Touring Car Championship, next year.

He said: "Obviously, it's a double dose of satisfaction for Citroen Racing. Not content to have the greatest set of results in the history of rallying, Sebastien Loeb is still as hungry as ever for more victories and titles.

"His experience, his race intelligence, and his capacity to get 100% out of his cars, will be all the more crucial as we'll have a new car next season.

"Citroen Racing has been preparing for the future with Sebastien Ogier for some time now. This is why we wanted to sign a contract with him for the next three seasons."

Loeb is being partnered by Dani Sordo during the current campaign, but Ogier's deal does not mean the Spaniard will have to seek a drive with another manufacturer.

Citroen are understood to be finalising a programme for Sordo, who is set to be replaced in the factory team by Ogier for the remaining gravel rounds of this season's championship.

The news that Ogier, Loeb and Sordo are to remain with Citroen next season means that former F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen is the only driver in the manufacturer's stable not to have a deal in place for next year.

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