Why are F1 TICKETS so EXPENSIVE?
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- Опубліковано 10 лют 2025
- Formula 1 is the most expensive sport in the world so it should come as no shock that F1 tickets are expensive! What makes F1 tickets so expensive though and is F1 too expensive? Well a major contributer to the steep F1 ticket prices is related to how much it costs to host an F1 race! So if you want to find out why F1 tickets cost so much make sure to watch the entire video today and you can make your own mind up about the question of 'are F1 tickets overpriced'.
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Crazy how celebrities get invited but don’t have to pay when they have plenty of money to afford a $30,000 ticket
It’s a reality of life. Just like influencers on UA-cam with other business ventures that make them pretty wealthy taking fully paid airfares in business and first and accomodation in high end rooms when travelling to and from F1 events ensuring the review is of course full of praise.
Same in football matches and everywhere really
oh, its pretty common. The very poor get tons of help and free stuff. The very rich get tons of help and free stuff. And the middle class gets just exactly what is needed to not colapse and 0 help.
Ever heard of marketing?
@@Thanniah-T "Help" is not the word I would use for the rich
Phenomenal amount of detail & content gone into the making of this video. Kudos to you Kym for doing it free 😊
Much appreciated!
Not attended an F1 race in many years. As a pensioner, there's no way I can afford it. I used to be a race marshal and covered several European F1 races, plus a load of UK national and club events.
Let's not forget that F1 has always has been an elitist sport. It is where the rich can spend their money, whether they're corporations or individuals, to show off their products. Common people are just an audience with most watching on television. And, soon, the cost of that endeavor will go up too.
I agree. Don't know if I can even afford the F1 streaming app this year
TV is the better option
You certainly see a lot more
Seeing race live is a real expirience but you get very little context especially when you dont have a good view on screens. In hungary this year i was at the gp for the first time and the first thing when i returned to my place was to watch it again on f1tv.
@@skiper7795 I used to go to the Toronto Indy, payed for the ticket and watched it on the jumbo tron
@ Everyone should see at least one race live though, maybe someday Montreal for me ?
Having gone to a number of Indy races, watching on TV certainly has better views, but you'll never have a better experience than actually being at the race, hearing the sounds, *feeling* the roar, all while surrounded by fans. The energy is simply unmistakable.
And this is why I love Indianapolis- 10 bucks for a practice day, $20 for qualifications, and $50 general admission (infield) for Race Day. Of course grandstand seats start at around $75-85 and can go as high as $250-400 depending on where you sit, but Indy is BY FAR the biggest bang for your buck in all of motorsports. 🏁
EXACTLY
Grandstand Australian gp prices are 300usd . Far better than indy . and food and water don't cost an extra 500 usd
Great Video, Kym. It puts things into perspective. However, it still doesn't answer the question of why certain races have in-demand tickets, where the price advertised on their website is not what you end up paying.
I work for one of the companies that built the Pit Building for both the 1st and 2nd years of the Miami Grand Prix. The 1st year the only permanent structure was the 1st floor; the 2nd, third and 4th floors were temporary. The temporary parts of the structure were constructed like a normal building. Meaning they had install up to code HVAC, plumbing, electrical and fire protection systems. After the inaugural Grand Prix each discipline had to carefully take apart each system and they were stored in an off-site warehouse. A month after the Grand Prix we were told that we would not be rebuilding the temporary structure. A new permanent 2nd, 3rd and 4th floors would be built. And, that is what happened. The owners and organizers had the money to completely dispose of a temporary structure and its systems for a building that is three 930’-0” long, and also build a new structure with all of its new systems. The organizers at the Miami Grand Prix are doing fine.
well this is the strangest post. you spend 6 long lines explaining how much Miami had to incur in terms of cost and then say "it is doing fine" ?!?!
@ Your’e right. I should have put more into my post. If they have this much money to waste, then maybe the ticket prices shouldn’t be as high as they are.
Thanks for going over the costs of this stuff. Unfortunately I think the tickets are incredibly expensive and price out majority of the fans . It seems like only the rich can attend races now. 🤷🏻♂️
Every race sells out so how did you work that out
@ not true . This year the attendance was down on multiple races. Look it up. Either way do you think 1500-3000$ is low?😂
Having been a fan of F1 for the majority of my life, I've been lucky enough to attend a handful of races around the globe in the last few decades. Most of these have been after due consideration to options and cost but the last couple of years have sent the cost way beyond what typical fans could do. I know of someone that was online trying to get tickets to Melbourne only to get Sat tickets only and not Sunday and now are travelling interstate just for qualifying which is crazy. I was planning to go to Texas last year but the accommodation costs alone were out of this world. In 2000 I could buy general admission tickets for Monaco on the Friday before the event (as in Practice day or the day before) but no chance now!.
To be honest, not a lot has changed for a race weekend other than the price and popularity. Vegas was promoting celebrity catering but you can't tell me the top chefs in the world are advising how to cook a hot dog....
But hey if you want a bunch of people to attend to be seen at an event rather than fans, go right ahead but I wonder how long it will last (probably not as long as I've been a fan)
Absolutely, I don't think this DTS fan base would last that long.
Some of them will become a hardcore fan but the vast majority of them will be gone after a few more years, especially in the USA.
the taylor swift comparison really put the ticket price into perspective and the duration of the event. nice one.
well, to be fair..if you come just for the race it is also just "couple of hours"
comparable to that tennis finals (you wasnt there for previous rounds)
Its just the scale of that thing and that huge license fee
And even her concerts had huge price ranges, with some fans saying it was cheaper to fly to a different country to attend than it was to buy a ticket in their home country.
@CallieMasters5000 only in America. In Australia ts tickets were 100-200 usd , f1 races are 200-400 usd
Fantastic breakdown that includes lots of things that most would have never considered. Yet, F1 races are still almost an order of magnitude more expensive than a typical NASCAR race, a race that would include many of the same expenses.
F1 TV Pro....$85 USD per year. Very informative video, indeed a very expensive Sport.
What about the sponsor income via track side advertising. Also the cost for being the title sponsor for an event such as "your company name here" British Grand Prix and the revenue from licensing to track vendors and so on? We have companies like Rolex, MSC, Heineken and major international airlines stepping up here. All that must amount to a sizable amount. Surely the fee for being the title sponsor for an event goes to the circuit and not the governing body of Liberty Media .Circuits are sitting on a gold mine but are being hung over a barrel by the FIA and Liberty (who are already creaming it with TV rights) with extortionate licensing fees.
I haven’t been to a race since the 88 Montreal when I ran in a support race. Since then I’ve been perfectly happy to watch them on TV.
Yeah those are the advertised prices. Then Ticketmaster (owned by Liberty Media) adds a surge pricing levy that as much as doubles the price.
The only race I went to was last years Singapore GP. The tickets cost $3000 aud for grandstand seats for me and my husband. It’s probably the most expensive sporting event I’ve been to (including Tennis, AFL, V8 supercars and WRC) but was definitely the best. The entertainment alone (Kylie Minogue was one of the acts!) and other things that go on during the race weekend besides the race was 💯 worth the cost. Plus just seeing the cars and drivers in person was amazing. Yes it’s expensive but I it was also totally worth it for what I got.
I have the pleasure to watch every single race for free on my cable network while at home in my cozy sofa, eating popcorn and drinking soda's. No hassle, no travel expenses, no waiting in line's, no hard uncomfortable seats, no rain, no extreme heat, no smelling other peoples farts. Going to events like this is never going to be on my todo list, The inventor of Sofa made it so.
Watching a race live, you see the cars once every 60 seconds and then watch it on a big TV
As someone a hour away from silverstone my first gp wont be here
Thanks for giving a rundown on why F1 tickets are pricey. I went to Suzuka in 1998, 1999. Expensive then, expensive now BUT it was great experience.
Ive been to F1 races where a GA ticket doesn’t even get you any view of the track.
I always think about the cost but your video has shed a lot of light on why the cost exists. Thanks Kym.
BTW I’m the 1 who shouted at you from the stand in Zandvoort. Keep up the good work my friend.
Glad it was helpful!
It’s the reason I’ll never attend a race and started to watch IndyCar instead. F1 as a corporation makes plenty.
LOL at 6.00 a bottle of water in Montréal, the gouge is on
Now you know why there's $6.00 water.
$300k to appear in the FIA calendar?! Who even looks at that
US viewer/Formula One fan here been since 1994 and unfortunately it’s cheaper for me to watch a race in Europe than it is to watch my home Grand Prix in Miami.
I watched the 2024 Monaco Grand Prix in person from La Rascasse, right before the pit lane, from an office building - for free! And honestly, the view was probably even better than the people in the Paddock Club below me, who paid upwards of €10,000 for their tickets...
how did you find the office building?
Used to go to the Australian GP with my son year after year and most years the ticket selling mob would reach out and say, hey do you want the same seats as last year? Yes, please and the price was reasonable. Couple years before COVID they changed the ticket selling mob and that was the end of the same seats. Then the prices started to rise and the non track activities started to decrease. 2020 the GP was cancelled and since then haven't been able to buy tickets without selling a kidney. Aus GP has become a joke where you can't get general admission tickets even if you do sell a kidney. From somone living in Melbourne, watch it on TV and give the promoters the bird.
And it sells out in quick time. Popular event.
Loved the snatch quick cut-clip😂😂
Have a great weel Kym'n'Co⚡️🙌
Glad you liked it!
a mercedes baseball cap $90 in 2019! insanely stupid prices
Just buy a copy from China. But for collectors, those 90$ equals to nothing.
Never buy merchandise at the track - always buy it online at the F1 Store, Fuel for Fans, CMC Motorsports, the F1 teams’ websites or other similar vendors of official F1 merchandise
GA price just for Sunday race day in Melbourne this yr is $169, but yep sadly sold out before i got through
Those who scored a ticket at that price will be stoked!
This is why they need to keep a good balance of purpose-built tracks vs. street circuits.
In 2022 I got free tickets for the Mexico City GP, and still ended up paying around $150 USD for food, beer and transportation. BTW, the ticket, if I would have purchased myself would have costed $1,200 USD + Ticketmaster fees. Just stick to TV.
Used to visit Brands Hatch and Silverstone , cost was great back in the 1980s 90s. Dont bother now wont pay the prices . I stick with Touring cars, GT racing and heritage events, catch up with F1 on the telly box
I received my 100 page 2024 book with Lewis on the cover - and I was NOT disappointed! Great selection of photos of iconic moments and track shots and great farewell (for now) photos of Zhou and Ricciardo. It’s a great way to commemorate an exciting season, I’m so happy to have it!
Great to hear. You can also use it to build up your arm muscles given it weighs a good 4 kg.
Great video and a great insight to what it all costs
Glad you enjoyed it
Brilliant again Kym. Thankyou.
My pleasure
Before I watch, here's my take on it.
Stefano wants to make every race like Monaco, basically. They dont want regular fans at their events anymore. They want the high rollers. They're employing the big brands to attract them. As for ticket prices, they just price out regular fans. They only want people that will spend all the extra money they have and while Jim and his kids are happy to sit on the grass in the sun all day just for a glimpse of their favorite driver, F1 no longer cares. Jim isn't the person they want attending their events. Jim can barely afford a spot on the grass. An expensive ticket is probably the cheapest part of a full F1 weekend experience for the big spenders F1 wants.
Insightful info Kym, thank you!
Glad it was helpful!
Kym always giving us dope F1 insights. Thank you good sir!
My pleasure!
IMSA is £40 for a weekend GA just saying (and the cars sound better too)
and that ticket gets you access to the pits, imsa is the best value out there. took my kids to Petit Le Mans they loved getting to see the cars up close.
Great video Kym
Tbf Melbourne tickets are very reasonable priced. Can get GA weekend pass for couple of hundred and grandstand for Sat+sun for under 1k easily. Great value compared to other races IMO.
Considering tickets to sporting events in the U.S.( American Football, hockey...) a three day admission ticket to a regular grandstand is not awful... and the refreshments at the Miami GP were less expensive then other venues in the area
Went to the Malaysian Grand Prix in 2014. That was a great value weekend.
Sydney Australia will be hosting a SailGp event this weekend . Tom Slingsby is the local favorite.❤️
I did not know that.
We’re doing a F1 Experiences package to Miami this year. We really wanted to go to a European race but with the additional costs of travel it wasn’t feasible. We can drive to Miami but it wasn’t our first choice.
great content and research mr illman!
Obviously they are that expensive for FIA to not pay f1 stewards.
A lot of probably and guesses at the cost of F1 tickets. You could have become a scientists for NASA.
Thanks for explaining
You're welcome!
Thanks for sharing.
One word, profit
more like "prestige"
Sliding into the new season well informed
Thanks Kym, fascinating.
Glad you found it interesting
I totally understand why they have to sell their tickets really high to pay for all the expenses. But what you get for the price you pay is not enough IMO.
Love your shows!
You are asking why my Bugatti service cost is so expensive right?
This is why some of the country pulled out of hosting F1, or can't even afford to host F1 races at all. Another factor that may contribute on this is the popularity of car sales. This might be not significant, but the driver can also contribute to the euphoria of the sport as well. Example is Indonesia, my country. They have Sentul and Mandalika, but it will took a whole lot of money and time to homologate those race track. Car sales in total is still relatively low compared to motorcycle sales, thus why they prefer to host another racing series. No national TV station in Indonesia can even hold a broadcasting rights for F1 either.
Not too many countries wanting to pull out. These days there are plenty of other countries are hoping more pull out too
I had no clue there were 1,000 marshals but it actually kinda makes sense
stop doing street races. simple as that. easier on the promoters, easier on fans. better racing.
Can we get a video about the pit passes and the high price events? I would like to know what’s doable and I’m interested in the pricing of them
I've only been to the British GP once but I blagged a free ticket with some special access included.
I had a great time, met some great people, got serious sunburn and at least got to see Schumacher I'm practice before he threw the Ferrari into the scenery on lap one.
Would I have paid £300 for a one day general admittance ticket.....not in your nelly, that would pay for a whole year's drag racing meetings.
You forgot the biggest cost. All those photographers flying first class and staying at 5 star hotels
Promoters aren’t paying for us though.
CAMS don't pay for volunteer marshal accomodation
Turns out it wasn't "We dont want to give away tickets to F1 content creators" it was actually "Bro we CAN NOT afford to give these things away. We are straight up HEMORAGING cash rn"
2 things:
1) aren't all those costs also due in others racing series were the tickets are two or three times in order of magnitude cheaper, so why f1 so expensive?
2) then why hosting a race in cities where there are purpose built racetracks already there if racing in city is so expensive?
So, no need to be that expensive for f1
Don't get me wrong, I love f1, i love your contents exc... But all this seems an excuse to be that pricey
No wonder it's not that popular here. That's just insane to charge that.
I’ve been to the Shanghai GP twice while we were there visiting my wife’s parents. I thought that was expensive enough, not a chance I will pay Las Vegas or Miami prices, even though we could if we wanted to. That’s probably why we can afford to pay that price, we don’t go to any of these outlandishly expensive events, instead choosing reasonably priced more local things and watching the expensive events on TV.
And Shanghai is one of the better value races.
@ it was eye opening seeing what Vega and Miami are charging, but at least it’s not Super Bowl pricing. I think that is up to $3-4k for the cheap seats!
Hungary is the most affordable in Europe but prices shot up recently.
Many Europeans ( and non Europeans) go to Hungary as they can't afford to go their local GP's.
Great video yet again Kym, thanks. But look at the trend of the Aussie financials you show at 9:52 - in four years the losses have increased by 260% - if that was your business you would be making changes faster than a McLaren pitstop. I bet the Melbourne government or the national government are asking some serious questions about why they are having to bear those additional costs in underwriting the event. The other question I have, is where is the profit? This shows a breakeven scenario, but how does a circuit, especially a temporary one like Albert Park have any funds to reinvest and improve? Its not like they can have other events in the year to offset, not without a whole lot more variable costs. Its staggering, mind-bending risks
Hi. Writing from the states here. Just finished watching this past weekend the 12 hour race at Brathurst at Mount Panorama. What a great event. I bet those folks there didn't have to pony up a lot to go there. It looks like a great place to live, too. Very nice.
I'd like to attend an F1 as would most actual fans. But the cars go so fast that there's not much to see.
Boy Kym I'm sure glade i went to F1 races back in the 80s' ( the Senna years) to Phoenix GP, Mexico GP, and Montreal GP when it was affordable........LBCko
I’d say going to an F1 race is totally worth it, whether for three or two days. You’ll have an unforgettable experience, meet people who share your passion, and soak up an incredible atmosphere that’ll keep you buzzing for weeks.😇
You are right about the atmosphere!
The money goes to all the volunteers who risk their lives
So if the track is paying for everything then why does F1 need 60 million a race.
How do think Bernie became a billionaire.
Hopefully we have a South African race in the future, Would love to see a race with my dad atleast once in my lifetime
All the fees and charges and comes back on the ticket price. Why would it not come back on the broadcasting millions they make and make the tickets similar worldwide?
Taylor catching strays 😂😂😂
mexico city grand prix is ridiculously expensive. i've been 3 times, including last year, but only because i got the tickets for free from a friend whose family is part of the organising committee. otherwise i would NEVER pay for it. Austria is quite affordable in europe and also malaysia was incredibly cheap when it was still on. managed to attend 4 times there.
Huh a can of beans gets you GA, Some tortillas and guac gets you hospitality and marching powder
I’m a common wealth pig. I can’t even afford a bottle of water at a race, let alone a ticket
I watch F1 for 30+ years. I'm ashamed to say, how much I paid for a Sunday only ticket in Monaco in 2023. It's the biggest waste of money I've ever done. I bought more expensive stuff, but they were not a waste. I wish I was never there for the GP and I wish I had the brain to give this amount of money to a homeless person or send them to Africa. I'm sad to accept this, NEVER AGAIN F1 from a circuit. And to those you might say "you don't know how amazing it is to hear the F1 engine, that does worth it", I'll reply:
"I've been multiple times to Barcelona during winter testing, it was AMAZING and I was spending all my day at the track. Hotel next to the track. I will never forget the V10 engines, which were waking me up every day. I was in the track for hours, not just 2 hours for a race.". I hope F1 changes for the new generation, so they can enjoy it!
Well-ordered charity begins with oneself. Africa do not have the monopoly of poverty, in Europe there is a lot of poor people too (homeless or not), so next time maybe start with the ones where you live.
I paid 850 Euros for a seat for the Monaco GP and I agree it was a shocking waste of money . Also the cars are nowhere near loud and proud as in the 80’s, 90’s and Oo’s - I remember walking over a low footbridge in the Canadian GP and being shaken to bits when Webber went underneath in his BMW.
This was very comprehensive !
Great video. Genuinely new information to me. But don’t you get a bit queasy with what a bloated monster F1 has become? I get it - there are enough people willing to pay the crazy ticket prices, but honestly the expense and excess has become a bit obscene.
Considering I went last Yr, skipping this year but, definitely going next Yr. It is expensive for the whole weekend ( silverstone).
Because drive to survive has made this sport very popular
Wait til the F1 movie hits
And there I was, thinking it was expensive just to pay Max and Lewis' salaries!
So why don't other race events, like NASCAR, that need the same stuff cost as much?
@@craigshields8806 Its a much different structure plus NASCAR has a $1.1 billion a year TV deal.
it’s crazy that the circuit pays F1 to host the race, the fact that they can get away with that today is shocking
If they would use permanent dedicated circuit the prices would probably average out to be far less
Yes, it's a very peculiar business model. Should be F1 itself to rent the tracks and not the other way round.
@@soundscape26 that would only make sense if F1 wasn't a particularly popular or watched sport. It's a valuable business proposition to have an F1 race at your track/in your city/country, so you need to pay for it. There's no shortage of places that want a race.
Tickets in Austin Texas are extremely expensive. You almost have to sell a kidney
I feel a little goofy for complaining about prices now. Yes they still cost a lot of money but in reality, its an absurdly expensive event to put on so its not like they're just pocketing a huge profit at the end of the day.
I've just got miam grandstand tickets 5 nights in 4* hotel and return plane tickets from London for £980. 1250 dollars
Really is the biggest show in town, fascinating!
Think our Hungaroring Apex 1 3 day grandstand tickets are about £400 each, but other cost included flights hotel transfers etc think total price is 2600 for two people, and hungary is meant to be one of the cheaper European races to go to.
and there's a new pit building going up as we speak now.
@KymIllman Have watched the tracks UA-cam channel they really have gone all out on the new pit buildings and grandstands
Many concerts have minimum ticket costs of over $200 for 90 minutes entertainment. F1 sounds expensive but its comparable to other forms of entertainment.
And you get 3-4 days of entertaining... Tickets aren't what's really expensive, often it is accomodation... I bought a friend of mine a ticket because he thought it was too expensive to justify for himself... But he has family that lives near the track and we can stay with them... So I basically got accomodation for like 25% of the cheapest option I could find, and I have some company as well
So basically the public pays for everything only so it's worth it for the sponsors. Wonderful.
So, knowing all this, who makes all the money in an F1 race? Is it the racing teams, the F1 company, the FIA, the drivers, Kym Illman, etc? And do the results really matter: can a team still make a profit even if they never win?
Why do tickets cost so much? Greed 😂😂
He said himself they could be more expensive. Don't underestimate the costs of the F1 race host.
watch the video u muppet
American parent of FOM Liberty Media Corp are absolutely milking it for all they're worth.
That's what businesses do I guess.
@KymIllman Sadly, you're mostly correct. The nonagenarian criminal £Multi-Billions tax evader, Bernie Ecclestone (who was previously the 'role model' as F1 supremo), is the act followed in how to successfully run the international franchise. However, he also did it many favours well as enriching himself (and The FiA) through his private fief.
FOM has added more races (in America) giving them more opportunities to carve out a bigger share of the pie; losing traditional races in Europe like Germany and France; SOON TO LOSE Belgium and Holland; but nothing in all of Africa. . . Morocco is in north Africa and already runs races in other categories, with estsblished an infrastructure of airports and hotels. It'll never happen ad long as FOM doesn't negotiate total control.