The Netflix fever is back in F1 as Season 6 of the popular docu-series Drive to Survive (DTS) is just around the corner. Fans are eagerly waiting for the annual dose of the DTS drama as Netflix will release the show’s new season on February 23rd. While the series has faced criticism about the overhyped narratives and even fake drama, it has boosted the sport a lot in terms of fandom. F1 photographer Kym Illman’s new video suggests that Drive to Survive has injected about 26 million US-based fans into F1’s ecosystem.
American audiences are a big deal for every sport and digital business due to the high ad revenue. F1 also has been focused on increasing the sport’s popularity in the US since Liberty Media’s takeover in 2017.
Thus, the joint production of Drive to Survive along with Netflix was also one of their strategies to popularize F1 in America. Since 2019, when Netflix first released the show, F1 has seen a huge rise in American audiences.
Kym Illman cited that according to a survey of 1,900 adult US-based respondents in March 2022, 53% of the audience credited Drive to Survive for boosting their fandom for F1. According to a Nielsen report, the American fanbase of F1 was about 49.2 million in 2022.
This indicates that as of 2022, Netflix and DTS have influenced about 26 million US-based fans to become dedicated enthusiasts of the sport. Such a boost is evident in the track audience and viewership figures of the American F1 races and other races too.
Liberty Media is quite happy to see its objectives of popularizing F1 in the US being successful. They are also planning to cash in on this increasing popularity of the sport among American fans.
F1’s plans to capitalize on the growing American popularity due to Drive to Survive
As Liberty Media saw the growing numbers of the American fanbase in 2020-21, they planned for a second race in the US. This was the Miami GP that they planned to host on a hybrid street circuit in Miami around the Dolphins’ NFL stadium in 2022.
It was a move to capitalize and serve on the growing hunger of American audiences for F1. Post the Miami GP, F1 went big with the Las Vegas GP.
A huge spectacle in one of the most entertaining and happening cities of the world – it was bound to get Formula 1 a lot of eyeballs. Liberty Media invested its own money of about $240 million to acquire land and get the preparations going for the third US F1 race for 2023.
And this huge investment paid off too, as the Las Vegas GP had an economic impact on the city’s business of about $1.3 billion. Even in terms of the racing, the Vegas street track proved to be brilliant with some amazing battles. Eventually, even drivers who criticized the track initially (say: Max Verstappen) enjoyed the racing and even the show.
Following the huge success of having three races in the United States, Formula 1 is not willing to slow down on its American front. There have been reports that the stakeholders are planning a 4th F1 race in the US in Chicago.
This could turn off some fans who are critical of so many US-based races. Although, given the financial opportunity to cash in on the growing fanbase, it makes sense on why F1 may go ahead if a 4th race is feasible.
