F1 bets big on long-term race promoters
As Grands Prix become multimillion-dollar mega-events, long-term contracts with cities and authorities are now the norm
Earlier this year Stephen Ross, owner of the Miami Dolphins NFL team, renewed a deal with F1 to host the Miami Grand Prix on a circuit around his stadium until 2041. Few were surprised by the length of the deal, such has been the recent growth in F1’s popularity: the sport has a global fan base of more than 827mn, a 63 per cent increase since 2018, and slots on the 24-race calendar are extremely scarce. The resulting trend has been for most promoters — the organisations that arrange the individual races at each venue — to strike long-term contracts, to 2035 and beyond.
F1 Grands Prix are now far more than sporting events; they combine entertainment, gastronomy and culture, over four days. The Las Vegas Grand Prix generated $934mn in economic impact in 2024, attracting more than 300,000 fans, and in just three years it has become the city’s largest annual event. The Brazil race this year brought an economic impact of R$ 2.3bn ($425mn) to the city of São Paulo.
“These are mega projects. They require major investment but, on the flip side, they are generating phenomenal economic return,” says Louise Young, director of race promotion at F1. “These are projects which sustain supply chains, communities and economies locally. These are, in many cases, the biggest events that happen in these countries or cities, and they become attached to the time of year that they’re scheduled.”
The F1 calendar comprises 24 races in 21 countries. The Americas host six, with Austin, Montreal, Mexico City and São Paulo alongside Miami and Las Vegas. There are four in the Middle East: Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Further east are Japan, Singapore, China and Australia, then Europe.
“For now, we think 24 is the right number of events for us, for the teams, for the quality of our product,” says Young. “We don’t see growth in the promoter business coming necessarily out of more events. We see growth around optimisation and changes to the calendar.
“It has been mooted that there will be rotation in the future, perhaps some rationalisation about our presence in Europe,” Young adds. “We hope to add perhaps one more destination in Asia. There are a number of prospects in Africa; we hope to find a partner who can be that long-term stable presence.” Although growth in the US market remains F1’s main priority, it has no current plans to add races there.
For promoters such as Miami and Silverstone, home of the British Grand Prix, which has a contract to 2034, long-term agreements make for better investment planning.
“It allows us to continue to invest in F1 and for F1 to continue to invest in their US strategy. Miami is a key piece of that strategy for them,” says Kathy Nowak, president of the Miami GP.
“When we’re planning, dreaming up different things we can do, we’re thinking about the next 16 years, rather than the next five.
The biggest challenge we have, which is unique, is we don’t just operate a circuit. We operate a venue that’s active almost 365 days a year with different events,” Nowak adds. “So if we were to go permanent on any type of structure, we need to contemplate the use of that 365, given that we also do Dolphins, soccer, concerts and Open tennis.”
Next year Nowak and her team will have a tight turnaround after the Grand Prix in May to be ready to host matches in the Fifa World Cup. “We start building the Grand Prix in January, and all the temporary structures need to be out before June 1, because Fifa is loading in,” Nowak explains.
There is significant diversity between F1 promoters, from big sports businesses such as the Dolphins, to automobile clubs in Monaco and Italy, and government agencies in Melbourne. This diversity contributes to the individuality and unique character of each Grand Prix, something F1 and its owner Liberty Media value highly. When it acquired the sport from CVC Capital Partners in 2017, Liberty’s management team saw the financial stability and growth of promoters as a key priority.
“[We believed that] to have our promoters grow and benefit from the ecosystem would in turn pay dividends,” says Young. “We want promoters who are ambitious, who are investing, who have an eye to the future and want to grow the fan base domestically and internationally. Our success is the promoter’s success and vice versa.”
Stuart Pringle, chief executive of Silverstone Circuit, had extensive experience of dealing with Bernie Ecclestone, F1 chief executive under CVC’s ownership, when promoters would come and go, and sometimes go out of business. “Liberty values the relationships with promoters — [investing] more time into working together and collaboratively growing the product for the benefit of the fans,” he says. “It feels far more collaborative nowadays.
“Longer contract length gives promoters long-term certainty and confidence to invest in facilities and grow relationships with local partners. In our case that is ‘Destination Silverstone’ and future motorsport talent, in our karting and young driver programmes or young engineers in education programmes based at Silverstone.”
Promoters are finding that the profile of their customers is changing, with 43 per cent of the total fan base now under 35 and 42 per cent of them female.
“Our audience tends to lean younger and we’re seeing more female audiences,” says Nowak of the Miami GP. “We’ve got newer fans, coming to experience the party, the festival likeness of the event. You’re going to see world-class racing action on track. But you’re also able to leave your seats and experience Miami through the food and beverage, through the entertainment. We’re catering to that younger fan looking for an all-day experience.”