Do you think that F1 will lose even more viewers as new non-european races are held?

Question

Bernie took away two top European races this year, the European GP, and the San Marino Gp and is planning on a Korean and Indian GP. I am all for the globalization of F1 but Bernie needs to realize that F1 is fueled by European sponors, and European cash. If he continues to take away European races and add Korean/Indian venues, those European sponsors may just pull out of F1. And if they start to pull out, European teams won't be able to afford to race without the financial backing of those giant European sponsors. Could this spell doom for F1 if Bernie isn't careful?

Answer 1

i think if they ever get rid of the british gp then it will die
i think it will get more views going to asia but loose views in europe

Answer 2

Big sponsors are everywhere and so are fans. If he (Bernie) sees hands of cash being waived high enough in the air from other countries who are willing to pay the big bucks to host Formula 1, you can bet that Bernie will look into it. With so many European circuits getting old and organizers not wanting to pay the fees or demanding a share of the profits, it only makes financial sense for him to look elsewhere in other big dollar markets. He will never make Europe a minority market for Formula because he has enough business sense and class not to make that fatal mistake, but at the same time he recognizes the opportunities and growth that can come with other countries hosting these elaborate events. I think it's a good thing to make Formula 1 more globally know so that we can increase the viewing range of F1, it's sponsors, manufacturers, and drivers. We could then see more races then ever before as an immediate possibility. The history of Formula 1 and it's great tracks will never be forgotten, much like it's cars, teams, and drivers. But like any sport that expects to thrive and live long, you must adapt, grow, and stregthen yourself to all markets and take in all options to stay alive in a competitive environment. I think it's a good thing and I hope that one day this growth will expand more into the US so I can get a larger taste of it than what I get now.

Answer 3

I think you have it slightly skewed, Bernie would not be flying his circus over to the far east and developing nations if the European sponsors and advertisers didn't have a say. Globalisation for F1 means more exposure for sponsors, more money and more teams and more sponsors. Its not great environmentally, but to be honest, Bernie doesn't give a toss and i'm sure the teams are with him 110%.

I must say, the fact that the seasons are becoming 17 race minimum is BS. If he has to sacrifice Euro races, i'd rather he gets rid of pug ugly tracks like Hungaroring and Magny Cours but this won't happen due to politics for the former and history for the latter.

Answer 4

With all due respects, F1 is not going to run out of sponsors. And the a few thousands lost in Europe can effortlessly be compensated by the millions from India and China alone. In India 10 years ago, someone like me was considered to be a wacko for watching F1 when Cricket was on. Today things have changed, F1 is a heavily watched sport here and I can boldly say that the current F1 fanbase in India will outnumber the whole of Europe and the headcount is rising.

Answer 5

As long as Monaco, Belgium, Monza, Nurburg, and Silverstone are left in the running I think it will be fine although I would be sad to see Hungary off the list. My bias aside as long as F1 keeps to the tracks in Europe that are seemingly perennial to all of us, I don't see any qualms in the future. As far as globalization goes I think many of the sponsor's involved would probably be lobbying Bernie to reach out to a more global fan base. It also must be remembered that Ferrari's main sponsor is an American based company. On the subject of Marlboro I feel that the main reason for the globalization of F1 is many European countries ban on Tobacco sponsoring. So in the end Bernie will probably be bringing in allot more sponsorship money than we all think.

Answer 6

Bernie didn't get to where he is by being a fool. Expansion into Asia is good for business. The biggest problem I see is the lack of any kind of meaningful challenge from any team outside of Ferrari and McLaren. I can't stand having the race decided by the third lap. There needs to be some level of parity in the sport, but not via the usual meddling by the governing body. I think that the "lesser" teams need to get their programs in order to mount some sort of threat to the big two. Maybe racing in non-traditional venues will attract some more money to the weaker teams and make races interesting again.

Answer 7

Love him or hate him, Bernie Ecclestone is a pretty smart cookie. I'm not an Ecclestone apologist, however, it's no coincidence, of (arguably) the three major worldwide racing series', F1, FIM and WRC, F1 is by far the most successful when it comes to commercial concerns, popularity and the amount of revenue generated and we all know Mr. E pulls the strings in that one.

True, he's lined his own pockets over the years, but he's also made it possible for people such as Frank Williams, Ron Dennis, Paddy McNally, Peter Sauber and yes, Eddie Jordan, to rise from obscurity and become multi millionaires. It's a little known fact that Eddie Jordan was almost bankrupt after his first season in F1, but Bernie came to his rescue with generous loans; when Eddie sold his team, he was a multi millionaire.

As for teams losing European sponsors because of the shift away from European races, let's not forget that those sponsors also want exposure in the emerging economies of India and China.

I recall the naysayers suggesting doom for F1 teams when tobacco sponsorship was forced out, but that hasn't happened and we are now seeing new sponsors, ones who probably didn't want to be associated with a sport that once depended on tobacco money.

Answer 8

Yes and No as it works both ways.

Yes- Those in Europe may be put off by the time the races are aired. If the race is held at 2pm or 3pm at eastern countries (Japan, Malaysia, China) that would be sleeping hours in europe. Die hard fans may stay up to watch but people have to go to work the next morning.

No- Will gain more viewers as more people will be interested to watch f1. New fans. People will also want to check out new race tracks to see if drivers can handle it. opens up more doors for business.

Answer 9

There are a lot of F1 fans in Asia, despite any big name .
Asian constitute around half the world population.
If a circuit comes to India , the number of fans will drastically increase, same has happened in China. These two countries can change any poll. Think if one good driver come from any of these countries...F1 will become more popular.

Yeah the viewership might decrease in Europe, but I think it will keep on increasing over the years...US has never viewed and will never do in future, so that hardly affect the viewership.

Answer 10

No, I don't think so. It's always interesting and exciting to have new race circuits. F1 may in fact, gain more viewers who are eager to watch the new F1 race circuits. And besides, Bernie Ecclestone is a man in power who always knows what he's doing.

Answer 11

Cant possible. Asia has the largest population as well as F1 fans . European conquest over F1 is coming to an end.