Analysis: How Formula 1 conquered America

(Motorsport-Total.com) - Miami is only the first US stop for Formula 1 in the 2025 season . The racing series will return to the United States of America two more times throughout the year. But that wasn't always the case: For a long time, Formula 1 struggled to gain a foothold in the US. But now it finally seems to be properly serving the vital US market.

How did this succeed? Motorsport-Total.com spoke with several insiders, most notably Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali, who cites a "targeted strategy" and says: "We wanted to bring Formula 1 closer to American fans. That has been our mission for the past five years."

Was this strategy successful? Well, if Shakira were a mathematician, she would undoubtedly have agreed that numbers don't lie—because, to stick with this somewhat strained musical image: Formula 1 has conquered America, much like the Beatles did in the 1960s.

Formula 1's own figures show that there are now 52 million Formula 1 fans in the US - an increase of more than ten percent from 2024 - while half of these followers have only joined in the last five years.

Ratings have also increased: While ESPN may soon no longer be the home of Formula 1 in the US, the live race audience has doubled since 2018. And so far this season, there has also been a significant increase in viewership for the first five races.

"Formula 1 has never been stronger globally, and growth in the United States has been one of the main drivers of our development in recent years," says Domenicali.

How Formula 1 reaches its audience

This growth is due to the way Formula 1 reaches its new audience: "We offer fans what they want, in a form they want to consume," explains Domenicali.

"We need to be aware that while we are a sport, our offerings and reach have expanded, and we compete not only with other sports but with all forms of entertainment. It's a highly competitive space where different age groups have different expectations of brands and entertainment."

In his view, the key is to keep Formula 1 "relevant throughout the year," says Domenicali. The series boss therefore has high hopes for the new Formula 1 film, which will be released in 2025. "This is a significant moment for our sport to reach new fans worldwide, especially in the USA," says Domenicali.

"We're also adding new partnerships that will further anchor our brand in the US market. And of course , Cadillac, an iconic American brand, will be on the starting lineup starting in 2026. Having cultural relevance in the US is at the heart of our strategy."

How the teams are experiencing the Formula 1 upswing

The ten current teams are also part of this strategy. Jefferson Slack, Managing Director of Marketing at Aston Martin, has a special insight into how fan culture has developed in the USA – especially since he also witnessed the dark hours of Indianapolis 2005 , when 14 Michelin drivers withdrew from the race for safety reasons.

Now he says: "Formula 1 has cracked the US market. Let's put it this way. Because I'm an American, and when I was young, Formula 1 just didn't matter to us."

" Bernie Ecclestone made some attempts , but I'll never forget watching the race at Indy, when the 14 cars turned off after the formation lap. I just thought, 'Okay, that's not how you win fans in the US.'"

The Netflix effect for Formula 1

What ultimately tipped the scales in Slack's favor? Netflix— the potential future rights holder of Formula 1 in the US —seems to have played a major role. According to Slack, "Drive to Survive" as a Formula 1 series "had a global impact, but was especially significant in the United States."

"I'm constantly having meetings with people like me, and I ask, 'Do you like Formula 1?' And an American says, 'Well, I don't really follow it, but my daughter in college loves Formula 1, so we watch it together.'"

Formula 1 has thus arrived in the American mainstream. John Rowady, founder and managing director of the US marketing agency rEvolution, agrees: "It's the only truly global 'super league' that enables worldwide fandom without displacing traditional sports in the US."

"American sports fans value authenticity—and now that Formula 1 has entered the American market and zeitgeist in an authentic and meaningful way, fans are connecting, discovering Formula 1, and engaging."

Why companies are also jumping on the bandwagon

The model established by Formula 1—which includes three Grands Prix per year in Austin, Miami, and Las Vegas—attracts not only fans but also American brands. For Slack, this is no surprise: "There's simply no comparable global platform."

"Now it's up to us to make good use of that while also ensuring we get the fan engagement right to maintain interest. But the start was extremely successful—and Formula 1 continues to grow. 50 to 75 of the top 100 tech companies are already involved. You won't find that on any other global platform."

US brands in particular have become active: "Since 2018, the number of American partners in Formula 1 has more than doubled," explains Bjorn Stenbacka of Spomotion Analytics.

"In 2024, we reached an all-time high of 115, and in 2025, we achieved that number again. With further partnerships ahead of the upcoming US races, 2025 could even set a record."

"However, the rapid growth of recent years appears to be slowing down – the number of US partners is stabilizing at this high level."

"Ferrari is a good example of the reach of American brands: Italy has historically been the country with the most partnerships—but last year the US overtook Italy. This year, the two countries are neck and neck."

Does Formula 1 have even more potential in the USA?

This raises the question: How far can Formula 1 grow in America - especially in light of competition from established sports such as American football, basketball, baseball, ice hockey and college sports, as well as other racing series?

"It's not an either/or situation," says Slack. "The NFL is the best sports business model ever created, but it's very US-centric. We're tapping into a global platform. As great as the NFL is, it's not global. Formula 1 reaches almost every major market in the world. No other US sport can do that."

But Domenicali emphasizes: "We must remain respectful of the traditional US sports. We have 24 events a year, other leagues have several games every week—so the offerings are different."

"Our goal is to build on our passionate fan base and fantastic partnerships and continue to grow."

"The past five years have shown what's possible, and I believe that as a sport we can reach cultural areas that others can't and offer a unique global proposition commercially. We love racing in the US, the fans are incredibly passionate—and we're just getting started."

Where Formula 1 still has some catching up to do

Rowady, in turn, highlights where Formula 1 still has some catching up to do compared to established US sports that are "deeply rooted in local communities," as he describes it. "This distorts the analysis of Formula 1's tremendous success in the US."

"The real success factor is demographic development. Compared to the four major sports leagues, Formula 1 has a younger audience, particularly many 16- to 24-year-olds and many women."

"In the US, the average Formula 1 fan is between 32 and 35 years old—significantly younger than in American football (50 years), basketball (42), baseball (57), and ice hockey (49)."

"Formula 1 doesn't need to compete for the 40- to 50-year-old audience; it's already reaching Generation Z and Generation Alpha, America's future opinion leaders and consumers."

"Thanks to the increased involvement of American companies through sponsorship and commercial development, American economic growth is also being driven. Formula 1's episodic involvement in the US before 2018 is now finally over," says Rowady.

However, he sees deficits in monetization. For example, US leagues are more successful with licensed merchandising than Formula 1, where many offerings are "difficult to access, nonexistent, or overpriced."

"Although the 'Formula 1 lifestyle' is highly sought after in the US, the brand remains inaccessible to many," explains Rowady. "This is an obstacle to the mass popularity that the other major US leagues have already achieved."