Liberty Media has announced a $141million increase in F1 revenue for the first quarter of this year as it begins to recover from the impact of the global pandemic.
Like any business, the sport was hit hard last season by Covid-19 that resulted in numerous race cancellations and a heavily revised calendar of 17 races that for the overwhelming majority went ahead without fans.
With Formula One expecting a full 23-race calendar this year, and even though events are again going ahead without fans at present, the first shoots of recovery for Liberty Media are now beginning to show.
Figures show an increase – which takes into account race promotion revenue, media rights fees and sponsorship fees – from $39m in the first quarter of 2020 to $180m for the same period this year, a rise of 362 per cent.
During the same period, the operating loss has decreased from $137m to $33m.
Formula CEO Stefano Domenicali pointed to the impact of on-track action, the addition of the new race in Miami and the Netflix series Drive to Survive for the growth.
“The competition on the track has been fierce and sets Formula 1 up for an exciting season,” said Domenicali.
“We are thrilled to welcome Miami to the calendar in 2022, which will attract fans from across the Americas.
“Additionally, we extended our agreements to race in Japan and Canada, furthering our commitment to grow F1 in these regions. Drive to Survive continues to grow in popularity and we welcome the engagement with new fans.”
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