Formula 1’s American revolution – how the series finally cracked the USA

“Over the past five years, we have implemented a very targeted strategy to bring Formula 1 ever closer to the American fans,” F1 president and CEO Stefano Domenicali tells Motorsport.com when discussing the growth in the USA.

Has the strategy been successful? Well, if Shakira had been a mathematician, there is no doubt she would have agreed that the numbers don’t lie because, to eek more out of the strangled musical metaphor, F1 has broken into America much like The Beatles managed in the 1960s.

Its own figures suggest there are now 52 million F1 fans in America, an increase of more than 10% from 2024, while half of those supporters have followed the series in the last five years.

Viewership is also up; ESPN might not remain the home of F1 in the USA for much longer, but its live race audience has doubled since 2018 and so far this year there has been a noticeable increase in viewers for the opening five rounds of the championship.

“F1 has never been stronger globally, and the growth in the United States has been one of the main drivers of our development in recent years,” Domenicali pointed out.

Stefano Domenicali

Photo by: Andrea Diodato – NurPhoto – Getty Images

“Over the past five years, we have implemented a very targeted strategy to bring Formula 1 ever closer to the American fans – not only during race weekends, but throughout the year, through content, events and new engagement platforms.

“The focus is on continuing to give our fans what they want in a form they want to consume it. We must remember that while we are a sport we have grown in reach and offer, and we are not only competing with other sports but forms of entertainment. This is a hugely competitive space where different age groups act in different ways and expect alternative ways to engage with brands and entertainment.

“Keeping F1 relevant all year is vital. This year we will see the F1 movie released, which will be a huge moment for our sport as we reach new fans globally and will have a big impact in the US. We have new partnerships coming up that will further ingrain our brand with the US consumer, and of course we have Cadillac, an iconic US brand, joining the grid from 2026. We have to be culturally relevant in the US, and that is at the heart of our strategy.”

It is a strategy that also includes the 10 current teams on the grid, and Aston Martin managing director of commercial and marketing Jefferson Slack has a unique insight into how F1 fandom has developed in the USA in recent years, having also seen the dark days of Indianapolis 2005 when 14 Michelin drivers did not start the race, for safety reasons.

The start of the race with only six cars

Photo by: Steve Swope / Motorsport Images

“Firstly, the sport has, shall we say, cracked the US market. I’m American, and when I was young, Formula 1 just wasn’t part of our world,” he told Motorsport.com.

“Bernie [Ecclestone] tried to do a few things, and I’ll never forget watching the race at Indy when, what is it, 14 cars pulled off, and just like: ‘Okay, this is not going to pull in the American sports consumer who has access to the best in the world, both domestically and internationally’.”

So what, in Slack’s mind, eventually turned the tide in America? It seems that Netflix, the potential future home of F1 Stateside, played a huge part.

“Look at the whole Drive to Survive effect, which I think has had a global impact but is especially important in the United States – and when you look at the demographics, the sport has gotten younger, it’s gotten more popular,” he said.

“I have meetings all the time with guys like me, and I ask if they like Formula 1? And an American guy will say: ‘No, I don’t really follow it, but my college-age daughter loves the sport, so we watch it together’.”

Domenicali touched on Cadillac’s impending arrival and the F1 movie, released in June, with Slack highlighting Drive to Survive, which has been renewed for season eight. John Rowady, founder and CEO of US-based sports marketing agency rEvolution, believes the three things are intrinsically linked to F1 finding a home in the United States.

“It is an excellent signal that F1 has become a part of the American sports fabric, and it is here to stay,” he told Motorsport.com.

“It is the only truly global ‘super league’ offering fandom from anywhere without having to displace it from stick and ball sports. American sports fans gravitate towards authenticity – now that the sport has re-entered the American market and zeitgeist in an authentic and meaningful way, fans are connecting, exploring and engaging.”

Excited fans fill a grandstand

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

The model put in place by F1, which of course includes three grands prix a season with Austin and Las Vegas on the calendar alongside Miami, attracts American brands as well as fans.

“We are a technology business. We win or lose based on our technology. So you put those two things together, you say to a company: ‘Hey, listen, you want a global platform… there’s nothing like it,” adds Slack.

“Now it’s up to us to take good advantage of that but also make sure we do the right things on fan engagement and other things to keep people interested. But at least for the initial part, it’s been extremely successful.

“There’s the macroeconomic issues happening in the world today, so I don’t know how that will affect. It’s not going to be helpful. But putting that aside, the sport just continues to grow in that space, and if you look at the top 100 tech companies, I’d say 50 to 75 are in the sport. You’re not going to find that in any other global platform.”

American brands in particular have looked to benefit from F1’s boom in their home country by partnering up with teams or the championship itself, with more of them than ever now onboard up and down the pitlane.

“Since 2018, the number of American-based partners has more than doubled,” Bjorn Stenbacka of Spomotion Analytics explained to Motorsport.com.

“In 2024, it reached an all-time high with 115 and that has been matched in 2025. With new partnerships expected to be announced ahead of the upcoming races in the US, it’s likely that 2025 will set a new record.

“However, the rapid growth seen in recent years appears to be slowing, suggesting the number of U.S. partners is beginning to stabilise at this elevated level.

“To see the reach of American brands, Ferrari is a great example. Italy has been the number one country on its partnership list, probably since the start. But last year US passed Italy – a historical switch – and this year, so far Italy and US are equal.”

Charles Leclerc, Ferrari SF-24

Photo by: Zak Mauger / Motorsport Images

The old adage of ‘build it and they will come’ could be applied to US fandom, and subsequent brand-rush, in F1 while also being true when it comes to the literal bricks and mortar used to create a full-time Las Vegas residency alongside the yearly grand prix.

“This dynamism has made Formula 1 even more attractive for American commercial partners, who see in our sport not only a direct connection with an increasingly large and diverse audience, but also a privileged access to a unique global network, with 24 races in 21 countries. An opportunity that, in the global sports landscape, is unparalleled,” added Domenicali.

As Stenbacka suggests, there has been a partnership plateau when it comes to US brands entering F1 as the growth in that sector at least begins to slow.

So just how far can F1 continue to develop in America, especially when it is now looking to compete with the major established sporting leagues such as the NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL as well as college sport and other race series?

“It’s not one or the other,” Slack said on the subject. “The NFL is the best sports business model ever created, but it is very, very U.S-led, whereas what we’re tapping into is a global platform – and as great as the NFL is, it is not a global platform.

“Formula 1 reaches almost every important market in the world. None of the U.S. sports do that. So it’s just a totally different thing. Three races (in the US) seems to me sufficient to me but it’s 25% of the world economy, so you could clearly have another race from an economic standpoint.”

While Domenicali spoke of a “very targeted strategy” he also insisted F1 was aware of the legacies behind the leading US sports.

“We must be respectful of highly established US sports,” he said.

“Firstly, we have 24 events in one year, and other sports have multiple events and games every week, so the offer is different. Our target is to continue our growth, building on our passionate fanbase and fantastic commercial partnerships, and I am ambitious in what we can achieve.

“The last five years have shown what is possible, and as a sport I believe we can reach places culturally that other sports cannot and that we offer a global proposition, commercially, that is unique. We love racing in the US, the fans have incredible passion, and we are only just getting started.”

Rowady, meanwhile, pinpointed where F1 is still finding shortcomings when compared to those long since established American sporting brands.

“Direct comparison to legacy US sports leagues where teams are grounded in communities and local traditions inadvertently diminishes analysing the fantastic results F1 is having in the US,” he said.

McLaren and Red Bull fans celebrate in a grandstand

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“I find the real story for F1’s growth trajectory is in the demographic capture. Compared to the big four leagues, F1 boasts a younger fanbase and is particularly successful in attracting 16-24-year-olds, many of them females. In the U.S., the average F1 fan is between 32 and 35 years old, notably younger than the NFL (average age 50), NBA (42), MLB (57), and NHL (49). F1 doesn’t need to chase the 40–50-year-old demographic — it’s already cultivating Gen Z and Gen Alpha, the future leaders and consumers in America. The future lies with them.

“Furthermore, with more American companies getting involved through sponsorship and commercial development, that brings with it the American economic engine for growth. F1’s start-and-stop US engagement phenomenon pre-2018 is over.

“However, F1 continues to face barriers in what we call fan monetization compared to what US sports leagues are able to offer. Licensed merchandise and entertainment experience [i.e. multiple F1 touchpoints for fan engagement] remain either difficult to access, non-existent and/or priced at a premium.

“While F1’s “lifestyle” brand is highly aspirational in our culture, it often feels unapproachable for the broader public, making it a hurdle to build the same mass audience scale seen in other major U.S. sports leagues.”