Owned by Liberty Media, this company owns the commercial rights to the world’s most famous auto racing event.
Part of Liberty Media group (a collection of stock tickers of various companies listed on NASDAQ: LSXMA, LSXMB, LSXMK, FWONA, FWONK, BATRA, BATRK).
Probably It carries a bunch of debt because of its previous private equity ownership.
F1’s total net debt to covenant OIBDA ratio, as defined in F1’s credit facilities for covenant calculations, was 5.3x as of September 30, 2019, as compared to a maximum allowable leverage ratio of 8.25x.
Primary F1 revenue is comprised of (i) race promotion fees, (ii) broadcasting fees and (iii) advertising and sponsorship fees. Results in the third quarter of 2019 were unfavorably impacted by the timing of the 2019 race calendar, with seven races taking place in the third quarter of 2019 compared to eight races in the third quarter of 2018.
Race promotion revenue decreased due to one less race held in the third quarter of 2019 and the impact of the renewal terms of one contract. Broadcast revenue increased primarily due to contractual rate increases, partially offset by the lower proportionate recognition of season-based income during the quarter (7/21 races took place in the third quarter of 2019 compared to 8/21 in the third quarter of 2018). Advertising and sponsorship revenue increased due to revenue from new sponsorship agreements. Other F1 revenue decreased in the third quarter primarily due to one less race held in the third quarter of 2019 and non-recurring television production fees in the prior year period.
Operating income and Adjusted OIBDA(2) increased in the third quarter as the revenue decline was more than offset by reduced costs. Team payments were lower in the third quarter driven by the pro rata recognition of such payments across the race season, and other cost of Formula 1 revenue was lower due to one less race in the quarter, which drove decreases in FIA regulatory fees, advertising and sponsorship, hospitality and other event based costs. Selling, general and administrative expense was relatively flat in the quarter.
F1’s total net debt to covenant OIBDA ratio, as defined in F1’s credit facilities for covenant calculations, was 5.3x as of September 30, 2019, as compared to a maximum allowable leverage ratio of 8.25x.
The businesses and assets attributed to the Formula One Group consist of Liberty Media’s subsidiary F1, its interest in Live Nation, minority equity investments and an intergroup interest in the Braves Group. There are approximately 9.1 million notional shares of the Braves Group underlying the Formula One Group’s 15.1% intergroup interest as of October 31, 2019.
With the new F1 season (maybe) starting this weekend it feels like a good time to bump this request.
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BBC:
F1 chief executive Chase Carey was in Hanoi on Thursday trying to find a way around the restrictions.
The F1 business was overvalued when it was purchased by Liberty and someone has to repay all the debt used to purchase it. The money comes from venues, given how flawed the business model is, and a lot of that revenue is now under “?”. F1 teams depend on that revenue, so it will be difficult for them to survive through sponsorship money only.
F1 is called off until May:
CVC - the previous owner and a well known private equity group - was the biggest winner in F1. Some background:
2015:
2016:
Update: https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/148652/carey-defends-f1-australian-gp-decisions
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eSports
Last weekend McLaren’s Lando Norris and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen both took part in separate virtual races online which proved to be very successful, with live viewers in the hundreds of thousands.
The F1 drivers taking part have yet to be announced but Mercedes have stated they are looking into the logistics of Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas taking part, subject to being able to supply them with the required equipment. The team confirmed they would be involved on some level regardless.
In order to create a level playing field across competitors with varying degrees of experience of esport racing, the settings will be configured to ensure equal car performance with fixed setups. Vehicle damage will be reduced and drivers will have the option of using anti-lock brakes and traction control.
On weeks when no GP was scheduled F1 will also host online exhibition races where fans will have the chance to compete with real F1 drivers. Two of the postponed races, the Dutch and Vietnam Grands Prix, do not feature in the 2019 iteration of the video game and will be replaced by alternative circuits.
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A qualification and a half-race in one session for free on YouTube. What’s not to like.
And Chris Hoy is racing among F1 and F2 drivers.
Someone got a five place grid penalty already during Q1:
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