Formula 1 is very much alive. It is the main reading that can be extracted from the data on audiences, attendance and monitoring of the 2021 World Cup, in which we live a course for history that ended up choosing the side of Verstappen and Red Bull against Hamilton and Mercedes.
In fact, that race, whose impact is still very latent, the Abu Dhabi GP, was followed by more than 100,000 million people.
Formula 1 television audiences in the 2021 season
Formula 1 calculates that the race that decided the 2021 World Cup, the Abu Dhabi GP , was followed by 108.7 million viewers, almost 30% more than in the 2020 edition of the same grand prix.
It was the most followed race of the year, but what about the others?
- Formula 1 had a cumulative television audience of 1.55 billion, growing 4% from 2022.
- The races with the highest audiences were the Bahrain GP that opened the season (84.5 million) and the three with a sprint format (where there were two races), the British GP (79.5 million), the of Italy (80.4 million) and the Sao Paulo GP in Brazil (82.1 million)
- On average, F1 grands prix in 2021 had a global audience of 70.3 million, the best figure since 2013
- The audiences that grew the most in terms of unique TV viewers (the number of people who watch at least one race on television) were those of Spain, with a year-on-year growth of 272%, probably influenced by the presence of Fernando Alonso. In comparison, the growth of 129% in Russia and 53% in the United States stands out. In this statistic, China stands out, by number of population, with a total of 70.8 million unique viewers.
- As for the accumulated number of viewers throughout the year, in the Netherlands the influence of Max Verstappen was noted, and there audiences grew by 81%, while in the United States (+58% year-on-year) France (+48%), Italy (+40%) and the UK (+39%) also saw large increases.
The growth of Formula 1 in social networks and digital platforms
The exciting 2021 season sparked a huge growth for F1 on social media, with the championship in any sport (not just motorsport) seeing the greatest growth.
- F1 has reached 49.1 million total followers on social media
- F1 growth across Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube, TikTok, Snapchat, Twitch and China platforms up 40% in 2021
- F1 was the sport with the highest number of interactions in 2021
- F1 video views increased by 50% to seven billion, with 1.5bn engagement representing a 74% growth
- The official website of Formula 1, F1.com, plus its application and its social networks had 44% more visits, around 7,040 million, with 113 million unique users (a growth of 63%
- The digital share of Formula 1, in which it is compared to the rest of sports, has risen from 10% in 2020 to 16% in 2021.
Spectators at the races
After playing most of the 2020 races behind closed doors due to the pandemic, Formula 1 was able to welcome spectators back into the stands at almost all grand prix.
- A total of 2.69 million fans went to F1 races in 2021
- The season before the pandemic there was a total of 4.16 million, but that of 2021 is a figure to take into account considering that in many countries only a percentage of people could enter and not the full capacity (as in the Spanish GP )
- Three grand prizes exceeded 300,000 spectators adding all the days: the United States (400,000 spectators), the F1ESTA of the Mexican GP (371,000 spectators) and the debut of the sprint format, the British GP (with 356,000 spectators) . In these three appointments there was a permitted capacity of 100% and the figures for 2019, the year before the pandemic, were exceeded by 132,000 (USA), 23,000 (Mexico) and 5,000 (Great Britain)
- 11 Grands Prix exceeded 100,000 spectators, and in addition to the three mentioned, the Belgian GP (213,000), the Netherlands GP (195,000), the Turkish GP (190,000), and the Sao Paulo GP in Brazil reached that figure. (181,000), the Abu Dhabi GP (153,000), the first Saudi Arabian GP (143,000), the Austrian GP (132,000) and the Hungarian GP (130,000). All of them when the restrictions began to relax.
Stefano Domenicali , the Chairman and CEO of Formula 1, celebrated F1’s growth in a “very special” year.
“We had a battle that lasted until the last race, and there was a lot of enthusiasm throughout the championship,” said the Italian. “We started to welcome our fans who are the heart and soul of our sport and although there were capacity limitations due to COVID, it was fantastic to see 2.6 million fans in the stands from all over the world.”
“We have also seen some very strong figures on social media and on television, which shows the excitement and interest that exists around Formula 1. We are looking forward to the 2022 season, with a record 23 races, new cars, new rules and a great challenge for all the teams and drivers. I know that all our fans are eager to start the season.”
