After huge profits in 2025, Formula One is racing towards 1 billion fanbase

Formula 1 is back in action this weekend after the mandatory “shutdown” period in the month of August. In the 20 weeks from mid-March to early-August, Formula 1 squeezed in 14 races across 4 continents — Australia, Asia, Europe and North America. The sport is “always on” to the extent that a compulsory “holiday period” is written in the regulations for the season.

In the three-week-long break in August, Formula 1 teams have to choose a two-week period where no development work is permitted on the car. The best part is that this break isn’t actively monitored by the FIA or by Formula 1. This means that the competitors “trust” that their rivals are following the rules as they are!

As per official reports released during the August break, Formula 1 is growing 10 per cent year-on-year i.e. adding 90 million fans every season. At this rate, the sport should have a billion fans on the planet (1 in 8 persons will be a fan) in the next few years.

The commercial impact of the explosion in the fan base is being felt across the entire eco system of Formula 1. In the first-half of 2025, Formula 1 reported a 14 per cent (or $205 million) increase in revenue at $1.6 billion.

The 10 Formula 1 teams netted $677 million in revenue from Formula 1. Yes, the teams get “paid” to go racing!

52 million American F1 fans will have two teams to cheer for in 2026 after Cadillac’s entry to the sport was approved a few months ago. In the build up to this weekend’s Dutch Grand Prix, Cadillac announced Formula 1’s famous “number 2” drivers, Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, in their driver line-up from 2026 onward.

Perez and Bottas have been discarded by former World Champion teams Red Bull Racing and Mercedes respectively. While this duo offers Cadillac a solid base to launch themselves in Formula 1 next year, the truth also is that the sport is facing a shortage of experienced drivers who are available for hire.

After Perez-Bottas, the list of available experienced drivers to have recently raced in Formula 1 is uninspiring — Zhou, Latifi, Schumacher…and Mazepin. In which case, Cadillac’s driver choice must have been forced.

The 2025 Dutch Grand Prix is the penultimate Formula 1 race to be held at Zandvoort. The local promoters have said no to hosting a Formula 1 race after their current contract expires in 2026. In a world where every country is bidding astronomical figures to host a Formula 1 Grand Prix, Zandvoort’s attitude comes as a surprise.

As Max Verstappen’s home race, the circuit has witnessed record attendance since returning to host Formula 1 in 2021. The average attendance per race weekend has crossed 300,000, but despite that the local promoters have chosen to bow out on a high. In fact, they plan to pursue rights to host American racing series — Indy Car and NASCAR.

The Orange Army will miss cheering for Verstappen in the Netherlands should the star driver decide to race for Mercedes or another team from 2027!

— Kunal Shah is an FIA-accredited Formula 1 journalist & a TV expert. He is the former Head of Marketing, Sponsorship & junior driver programme at the Force India F1 team.