Liberty Media is the media group that currently hold all commercial rights for the Formula 1 World Championship. In recent years, the racing franchise has enjoyed a massive boom in viewership that can be attributed to the popular Netflix series ‘Drive to Survive’. The series introduced the world of Formula 1 to several previously unaware people, mostly in the United States where the streaming giant has its maximum content consumers.

Following the tense title fight between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen in 2021, a season that saw Formula 1’s popularity to previously uncharted highs, it was expected to see a slight fall in viewership in the following year. However, it was observed that the viewer count jumped up by around 36%, which is one of the highest growth in viewer counts between two consecutive years.

This was followed by a massive increase in revenue for the Liberty Media that was solely attributed to Formula 1. In 2023, it was reported in August that there had been a slight fall in the average viewer count when compared to 2022.

It was observed in the United States, that with 10 races left on the 2023 calendar, ESPN’s networks were averaging 1.24 million viewers this season, down from last year’s 1.3 million, which was a record high in America. However, commercially, the revenue generated from Formula One is at an all-time high. According to autoracing1.com, the numbers point towards a massive growth of over $100 million between 2022 and 2023 as the revenue grew from $715 million to $887 million between the two consecutive years.

Stefano Domenicali previously mentioned the commercial rise in 2023 while addressing the Red Bull dominance

The Red Bull team’s dominant performance this season has raised concerns among many drivers and teams, who fear it may make the sport less exciting. Lewis Hamilton recently called on the FIA to take action, as Red Bull has been unbeatable since the start of the 2024 season, winning every race. Hamilton expressed concerns about potential viewership decline due to a lack of competition.

In response to these comments, F1 Chief Stefano Domenicali expressed his confidence in the sport’s current state. Domenicali further expanded on how Formula 1 has seen a rise in commercial revenue and stands on an all time high currently.

I'm not worried about that at all. The interest in Formula 1 is enormous, and commercially, we are still on the rise. Races are sold out everywhere. Max is very dominant, but there is a lot happening further down the field during the races this year. The sport is very healthy.

Domenicali seems content with the way the season is unfolding and believes that Formula 1’s increasing popularity, revenue and competitiveness will keep fans engaged. He appears to embrace the principle of ‘if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it’ in managing Formula 1.

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