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F1 revenue to $2.57 billion in 2022

Formula 1 Chief Executive Stefano Domenicali said the series is in its strongest position after generating more than $2.57 billion in revenue last year. Despite hosting the same number of races last year as last season, F1 revenues were up 20% year-on-year.  The 2023 F1 calendar features a record 23 races.

Increased revenue

The FIA announced a formal application process for new teams last month. This was after the 10 teams shared $1.157 billion in 2022 combined payments compared to $1.068 billion last year. Some newcomers have expressed interest in the championship and are in better financial health than their rivals.

While the 22-race schedule for 2021 is packed, there are still some entry restrictions, but last year saw a surge in entries when those restrictions finally disappeared and F1 continues to draw massive entry numbers thanks to the continued push from Drive to Survive.

Last year, the company made $2.57 billion in revenue compared to $2.136 billion the previous year. Their operating income -- what's left after paying for expenses and paying employees -- rose to $239 million from $92 million. F1 reported that its top revenue stream increased by 14% to $2.107 billion, which was comprised of $1.85 billion in revenue generated by its main metric. This coincided with 28.6% race promotion, 36.4% media rights, and 16.9% sponsorship.

Increased interest

The increased interest in the sport is reflected in a total claimed attendance of 5.7 million, up 36% since 2019, the last season unaffected by COVID restrictions until 2022. There was increasing fan engagement, as Domenicali said, in the sport due to increased activity in races due to new technical regulations allowing cars to move closer together.

Domenicali stated that Grand Prix had record attendance in 2022. The season saw over 5.7 million spectators, which was a 36% increase over 2019. People continue to attend Grand Prix through the next season due to overbooked schedules. Domenicali stated that growth in F1's viewership was apparent in both television and online viewership. He explained that the 2022 season's average TV viewership was 1.54 billion, with a 70 million average race viewership. This was compared to the 1.51 billion average TV viewership for the previous season. Additionally, Domenicali noted that the US had seen a 36% increase in viewership between 2021 and 2022. This resulted in an average audience of 1.2 million viewers per race day. According to F1 CEO, the sport saw the most growth in terms of social media following amongst other major sports leagues. In 2022, 60.6 million people followed it on social media— 23% more than in 2021. This increase also occurred in other countries like Germany, Italy, and Australia. Domenicali added that this was attributed to ratings rising 22%, 20%, and 9%, respectively.