Formula 1’s attendance figures reached new heights in 2019, with more than four million fans passing through the turnstiles over the season. For a second year in a row, the British Grand Prix was the best attended race.
Images © F1Destinations.com.
For a third consecutive year, Formula 1 attendance figures exceeded 4 million in 2019, with 4,164,948 fans attending the 21 races of F1’s longest season. The figure, which is based on data supplied from race promoters, is a 1.75% increase on the 2018 total. Meanwhile, overall race day attendance in 2019 was 1,771,106 – up 4% year-on-year. Formula 1’s Paddock Club ticket sales increased by over 7% in 2019, with those sales giving an overall average race attendance of 202,146.
“2019 has been another great year for Formula 1 and we are delighted to see that over 4 million fans joined us at our 21 races, beating the attendance figures for last year, including a record breaking Italian Grand Prix weekend attendance with 200,000 spectators. Our mission is to unleash the greatest racing spectacle on the planet and give our fans an experience they will never forget. We are therefore delighted to see that, based on research carried out on the ground, those attending events are enjoying their experience over a race weekend and we are determined to ensure they continue to feel that way.”
Since 2016, F1’s yearly attendance figures have grown by almost half a million (421,795). The figure is up by almost 72,000 from last year, despite the cancellation of Saturday’s action at the 2019 Japanese Grand Prix.
For the second year in a row, the British Grand Prix was the best attended, with the event reaching a record weekend attendance of over 350,000. There had been uncertainty over the race’s future, but a new deal signed over the 2019 British Grand Prix weekend will see the event remain at Silverstone until at least 2024. Silverstone also topped the list of highest race day attendances; with 3,000 more fans attending Sunday at the British Grand Prix than at the Mexico Grand Prix. Mexico (345,694) and Australia (324,100) were the only other races which surpassed 300,000 weekend spectators in 2019.
A further six races recorded weekend figures of at least 200,000: Singapore and USA attracted 268,000 each. The latter's figure is up 5,000 on last year, with some attributing that to a rise in interest off the back of the successful Netflix series Drive To Survive. Hungary's figure was up by 20,000 compared to last year to 230,000 – with much of that due to the presence of Robert Kubica on the grid; Sky reported 30,000 Poles attended in support of the Williams driver. Other races to have over 200,000 spectators were Belgium (251,864) and Austria (203,000), both of which have enjoyed healthy figures since the arrival of Max Verstappen. Also of note is the Italian Grand Prix, which in its 90th event attracted a record 200,000 fans – up by over 50,000 compared to 2016's figure.
The Canadian, Chinese, Australian, Austrian, Hungarian and Italian Grands Prix all welcomed at least 9% more fans than they did in 2018. Canada was the season's biggest gainer (+14.69%) but figures for the Montreal race have been treated with skeptisim in recent years. Not mentioned in F1's report are Azerbaijan, Spain, France and Germany. All four of these races reported lower ticket sales in 2019 than in 2018.
