Stefano Domenicali believes there is still a lot of market potential for Formula 1 in the United States. The CEO pointed out that the category has only scratched the commercial surface in the country.
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In the current calendar, there are three stops in the USA: the Miami GP, which takes place this weekend, the United States GP in Austin, and the Las Vegas GP – the latter two at the end of the year.
So, speaking at the Autosport Business Exchange Miami, the executive reflected on the period of Formula 1’s expansion in the United States and that there is interest in having more venues on the calendar.
“Well, if you think about it, F1 has always been present in the USA, but in a random way, I would say, in terms of presence. We have been in Detroit, we have been in Indianapolis, we have been in Austin. And the last time we were in Austin, not 100 years ago, but just eight years ago, we had about 60,000 people,” he said.
“And now we have three races where the average attendance is huge. This means that the evolution of love for Formula 1 in this country has been phenomenal. When we decided to be in Miami, we thought it was the right place, the right point of view, in a city that is basically very aligned with everything F1 wants to be: a glamorous place, the right economic environment, the right place to lead the development and growth of the business in the USA,” he added.
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“And now, interestingly, after three races, there are already many requests for us to be more in the USA. And that is something we need to manage, of course, carefully,” he continued.
“But we are just at the beginning of our journey in the USA. We have not arrived yet. And I have always said that the sport in the USA, which we respect a lot, is part of the culture. And changing a culture or making it evolve takes time. So, we need to keep insisting on what we want to do together with our partners and promoters, because the USA offers us a huge and significant growth opportunity.”
“And the scale of the business you find in the USA is not found anywhere else in the world. Of course, we are a global sport that needs to attract the attention of all companies and sports around the world. But definitely this market and this country represent for us an area where we will continue investing, and we will continue investing, with the right partners. But this is something that will take time to reach a new level of growth,” he pointed out.
“And we will not give up. We will stay here. We know that the biggest sports in the USA are still far away, but we are drivers.” So, we are not afraid and we will go on the attack, respecting, of course, other sports, but we will be present in the culture of American fans sooner than you imagine,” he concluded.
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