MOTORSPORTS
DRIVER BRAND PARTNERSHIPS
The pinnacle of motorsport has accumulated an impressive list of technical innovations that have changed our world, all derived from the quest of gaining a hundredth of a second advantage over competitors to help win the Formula 1 World Championship, which has enthralled fans for over 70 years. In January 2017, Formula 1 was acquired by US mass media firm Liberty Media for $4.6 billion. The acquisition meant the sport was 100% controlled by Liberty Media under the Formula One Group who curated a management team that represented every aspect of the sport and outlined key objectives critical to sustain the sports stability while looking to the future and grow the popularity of the sport while creating a modern, technologically-advanced, socially-aware, environmentally conscious and economically responsible cautious ecosystem.
In the 5 years since the completion of Liberty Media’s acquisition, they have redefined many aspects of the sport, but none more impactful and important than achieving the goal that had always proved to be dangerous divisive in it’s application. In 2019, Formula One Group announced measures that ultimately led to the cars on track today, which are under a new set of regulations and procedures without compromising the ability of teams to rapidly innovate and develop new concepts and technologies, to not dethrone the sport as one that pushes the boundaries of motorsports, and one that is already capturing the under-monetized segments such as the United States and all of social media, attracting a fanbase that places the sport within the top 3 sports in the world.
Furthermore, having already met sustainability targets 3 years into a planned 10-year implementation period, and despite the enormous disruption caused by the global pandemic, Formula 1 has attracted broader audiences, expanded into new global territories, transformed the race weekend for fans, all while consolidating and growing their inherited base audience. Today, to use just one astonishing metric, Formula One Group is valued at over $15.8 Billion.
Liberty Media are addressing the incomprehensibly complex and challenging path that even the most talented of young driver’s face when attempting to reach the pinnacle of motorsport. The traditional route, placing all politics and financial distortions aside, relies on the successful operation of the feeder racing series which young drivers graduate through Formula 3 and Formula 2. Through a number of changes already implemented by Liberty Media, there has been a noticeable awareness and visibility of younger drivers who come up through the ranks, providing them a platform to the world in which to attract new sponsors, trainers, managers, and of course, the Youth Driving Academies that teams such as Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes have.
Having being involved in the sport in the UK from a very young age and later a career in advertising and content creation in the US, I was fortunate to be in the perfect position to predict a new model within the sport. With industry contacts I had built over 15 years and the perpetually growing and broadening support of Formula 1 online and the subsequent growth of the supporting racing series as well as comparable series such as IndyCar and FormulaE, partnering brands with emerging drivers to create authentic narratives that had an abnormal yet organic amplification and social reach, formed the basis of defining this new commercial model that only added value to all involved.
