George Russell and Alex Albon lead the line-up for final Virtual Grand Prix event

February 11th, 2021 by Jenny Marshall

Williams Racing’s George Russell will go in search of his sixth consecutive F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix victory this Sunday at Interlagos in the Virtual São Paulo Grand Prix. The three-race competition comes to an end this weekend, but it is still all to play for as the teams compete one last time to win a share of a $100,000 prize pot for their charities.

Alex Albon, Red Bull Racing Test and Reserve Driver and Wings for Life ambassador, finished second in last weekend’s Virtual British Grand Prix, putting Red Bull in third place in the standings, and will be joined in this Sunday’s race by Red Bull Driftbrother Johannes Hountondji. Haas currently lead the championship standings following another high-scoring race for Pietro and Enzo Fittipaldi, who return this weekend to try and secure top spot. Ferrari sit in second position in the standings and are also calling upon young talent this weekend with Ferrari Driver Academy duo Arthur Leclerc and Dino Beganovic competing for them.

Nicolas Prost will be hoping to emulate his father Alain’s real-world F1 heroics when he lines up for Alpine alongside French comedian Arnaud Tsamere, whilst Mercedes will be relying on motorcycle rider Jake Dixon and cycling world champion Rohan Dennis, who both swap two wheels for four this weekend. Alfa Romeo continue with the same pairing of Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and content creator Jack McDermott, aka The Pie Face, for the third consecutive race, as do AlphaTauri, who will be represented by former F1 driver Vitantonio Liuzzi and professional motorcycle rider Luca Salvadori. The full line-up will be announced across the official F1 social media channels ahead of the event.

Teams are taking part in the Virtual Grands Prix to donate money to charities they have chosen to race for, and each nominated charity will receive a significant donation from the overall prize fund, regardless of whether the team finishes first or last in the standings following this week’s final race.

This year’s Virtual Grand Prix events will begin with a sprint-race, featuring the teams’ F1 Esports Pro Series drivers, to decide the starting grid, before the teams’ pairings, made up of motorsport stars, sporting heroes and celebrities, take to the track and compete.

The Virtual São Paulo Grand Prix will be broadcast from 18:00 GMT on Sunday 14 February on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Facebook, Twitch, Huya (China) and Weibo (China) channels, as well as broadcast by international television partners including Sky Sports, ESPN, FOX Sports and Ziggo.

Virtual British Grand Prix line-up announced as Williams duo Russell and Latifi return

February 4th, 2021 by Jenny Marshall

Williams Racing’s George Russell and Nicholas Latifi are the headline names taking part in this weekend’s Virtual British Grand Prix, the second of three special F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix events, as the teams compete to win a share of a $100,000 charity prize pot to donate to their nominated causes.

Alex Albon, Red Bull Racing Test and Reserve Driver and Wings for Life ambassador, secured a P4 finish in last weekend’s event, and will line up alongside Red Bull Junior team member Liam Lawson this Sunday. Enzo Fittipaldi took a dramatic win in the Virtual Austrian Grand Prix and will be hoping for more of the same when he returns for Haas, with his brother Pietro. Ferrari Driver Academy members Callum Ilott and Robert Shwartzman will represent Ferrari in Sunday’s race, whilst Vitantonio Liuzzi, a former star of the sport, will race for AlphaTauri, alongside professional motorcycle rider Luca Salvadori. Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois and content creator Jack McDermott, aka The Pie Face, return for Alfa Romeo, hoping to get into the points this weekend, and France’s biggest YouTuber, Squeezie makes his Virtual Grand Prix debut for Alpine. The full line-up will be announced across the official F1 social media channels ahead of the event.

Teams are taking part in the Virtual Grands Prix to donate money to charities they have chosen to race for, and each nominated charity will receive a significant donation from the overall prize fund, regardless of whether the team finishes first or last in the standings after the three events.

This year’s Virtual Grand Prix events will begin with a sprint-race, featuring the teams’ talented F1 Esports Pro Series drivers, to decide the starting grid, before the teams’ pairings, made up of motorsport stars, sporting heroes and celebrities, will take to the track and compete. The final event will take place on Sunday 14 February, where drivers will compete on the iconic Interlagos circuit before attention turns to the start of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship in Bahrain next month.

The Virtual British Grand Prix will be broadcast from 18:00 GMT on Sunday 7 February on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Facebook, Twitch, Huya (China) and Weibo (China) channels, as well as broadcast by international television partners including Sky Sports, ESPN, FOX Sports and Ziggo.

F1 Esports Series 2020 breaks viewing records and Virtual Grands Prix return to kick-start 2021

January 14th, 2021 by Jenny Marshall

The F1 Esports Series 2020 rounded off a huge year for Formula 1 and its virtual racing offering, as a record number of fans tuned into the action, achieving a total of 11.4m live stream views across all digital platforms, representing a 98% increase on 2019.

Alfa Romeo’s Jarno Opmeer secured his first F1 Esports title in December’s Grand Final event, as both the drivers’ championship and teams’ championship, won by Red Bull for the second successive year, came down to the final race of the campaign. The Grand Final alone achieved 2.7m digital views, setting a new record for a Pro Series event, previously attained in Event 1 of the 2020 season.

The nail-biting Grand Final also reached a staggering 1.7m social media engagements, an all-time record for any F1 Esports Series event, culminating what had already been a hugely successful campaign regarding social media interaction, as the Pro Series achieved 291m total social media impressions, a 151% increase on the 2019 season. Additionally, the series recorded 23.8m video views, up 29% on 2019, which was aided by increased social media output for last year’s campaign. Following the popularity of the previous Pro Series’ and last year’s Virtual Grands Prix, more people than ever before attempted to qualify for the 2020 season, as participation increased 117% to 237k.
 
Looking forward to 2021, F1 Esports aims to build upon the success of 2020, and is kickstarting the new year with the return of the Virtual Grands Prix, this time for a three-race competition with a charity prize fund up for grabs for the teams.
 
Over 30m people tuned into the Virtual Grand Prix series last year to see F1 stars, sporting icons and music chart toppers represent the ten F1 teams in eight live events that replaced the official calendar, as F1 Esports continued to bring fans competitive action when the real-life racing stopped due to the pandemic.
 
The Virtual Grands Prix will return on Sunday 31 January for three events on consecutive weekends, where the ten teams will battle it out for a charity prize fund, represented by a combination of F1 drivers past and present, celebrities and F1 Esports Series gamers. The format has been altered since last year’s events, as the pro gamers will now take part in a five-lap Sprint Race to determine the grid order for the Feature Race, where the teams’ duos, made up of the participating famous faces, will then compete at 50% race distance to secure points for the overall standings. The team championship standings will be tracked across the events and will determine how the prize fund is then distributed to their nominated charities.
 
Whilst the return of the Virtual Grand Prix Series will be F1 Esports’ flagship event for the start of 2021, it is just one of many virtual competitions taking part. The F1 Esports Series China Championship will crown its second winner in next week’s Grand Final in Shanghai after an entertaining campaign, while the inaugural F1 Mobile Racing Esports champion was recognised earlier this month, as Matteo Pagliani came out on top from over 60,000 elite qualifiers. The Challenger Series also continues for a further eight rounds across PS4, Xbox and PC platforms until April, before the F1 Esports Series Pro Championship returns in the autumn.

F1® 2020 HEADS TO MONACO WITH NEW HOT LAP AHEAD OF VIRTUAL GRAND PRIX

May 21st, 2020 by Jenny Marshall

We’re very happy to be able to show you the first F1® 2020 in-game hot lap on Circuit de Monaco, ahead of the iconic circuit’s appearance at this weekend’s Virtual Grand Prix. On the weekend where it was initially scheduled in the F1® calendar, the lap, recorded by the F1® 2020 development team, features Pierre Gasly’s newly re-branded AlphaTauri. The video can be viewed here.

Considered one of the most challenging circuits in the F1® calendar, navigating Monaco’s tight street circuit takes immense skill and courage with little chance to take your foot off the gas from start to finish. F1® 2020’s iteration is no different, with a full track visual uplift now complete following the updates in F1® 2019.

This Sunday, 24th May, F1® drivers including Charles Leclerc, Alex Albon, Esteban Ocon George Russell, Nicholas Latifi, and Antonio Giovinazzi return for the latest Virtual Grand Prix on F1® 2019’s Circuit de Monaco. The live broadcast starts at 6pm (BST) on the official Formula 1® YouTube, Twitch, Weibo, and Facebook channels alongside several international broadcast partners.

F1® 2020 will be released on Friday 10th July 2020 for PlayStation®4 computer entertainment system, the Xbox One family of devices including the Xbox One X, Windows PC (DVD and via Steam), and Google Stadia. Players who purchase the Michael Schumacher Deluxe Edition will receive exclusive content and three days early access.

For future news and details on all the new features follow the Formula 1 game website and social channels on Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and Facebook.

You can see our F1® 2020 screenshots right here:

Formula 1 drivers joined by cricket and football stars for virtual grand prix at Brazil’s Interlagos

April 30th, 2020 by Jenny Marshall

It’s time for another Virtual Grand Prix! This time, F1 drivers Alex Albon, Antonio Giovinazzi, George Russell, Nicholas Latifi and Charles Leclerc will be joined by stars from cricket and football world for this weekend’s virtual race at the Interlagos Circuit.

We’re very happy to have England cricketers Stuart Broad and Ben Stokes taking to the grid for this weekend’s Virtual Grand Prix too, alongside A.C. Milan captain Alessio Romagnoli, and they’ll be battling it out alongside Formula 1 stars in the fourth virtual race of the season, with more names being announced very soon!

Broad, who’ll be stepping up and racing for Scuderia AlphaTauri, will be looking to beat his England teammate Stokes, who’s racing in his second virtual Grand Prix for Aston Martin Red Bull Racing alongside Alex Albon.

Sunday’s Virtual GP will coincide withn the weekend which was originally scheduled for the Dutch Grand Prix, and as Circuit Zandvoort isn’t in F1 2019, the choice of circuit was left to you to vote on social media. Getting more than 50% of the 40,00 votes cast was Brazil’s Autódromo José Carlos Pace, also known as Interlagos – what a track!

Drivers will be joining the race remotely, and with a host broadcast live from the Gfinity Esports Arena from 6:00pm (BST) on Sunday May 3.

The broadcast which will be available on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch, as well as the Formula1game Facebook page. We’re expecting to be running for about an hour and a half, with a qualifying period where grid positions will be determined based on the drivers’ fastest lap time, followed by a 28-lap race.

The Virtual Grand Prix will also be broadcast live with international broadcast partners in over 100 countries including in the UK on Sky Sports, in the US on ESPN, and FOX Sports Asia across Southeast Asia.

That’s not all – right beforehand, at 5pm BST, you’ll be able to watch the F1 Esports pros race against each other in the F1 Esports Pro Exhibition race. You’ll be able to catch this T official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch, the Formula1game Facebook page, as well as selected TV broadcasters and is expected to run for 1 hour.

Julian Tan, Head of Digital Business Initiatives and Esports said: “We are delighted that so many fans are watching and engaging with the F1 Esports Virtual Grands Prix. The viewership continues to go from strength to strength, outlining the growing success of the races and the wider potential of Formula 1 in esports. Furthermore, we are thrilled to welcome more stars from outside the world of F1, to complement our strong F1 and motorsport driver grid, and use this opportunity to link up with other sports as we all stand together to give fans something to cheer about during these difficult times.”

Six Formula 1 drivers to race in China Virtual Grand Prix

April 16th, 2020 by Jenny Marshall

Following the success of the second instalment of the F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix, six Formula 1 drivers will battle it out at the Virtual Chinese Grand Prix this Sunday, 19th April at 18:00 BST. After winning the last race on his debut, Charles Leclerc will be out for victory once again, as he takes on his fellow Formula 1 competitors, George Russell, Antonio Giovinazzi, Lando Norris, Alex Albon and Nicholas Latifi on Sunday’s starting grid.

Alongside a star-studded grid of Formula 1 drivers, Real Madrid and Belgium international goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois makes his Virtual Grand Prix debut for Red Bull, with a host of other exciting names set to be announced over the coming days.

This weekend’s virtual Grand Prix is the third race in the new F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix series, which gives fans the chance to watch Formula 1 races virtually during the ongoing COVID-19 situation.

This weekend’s Grand Prix will take place at the Shanghai International Circuit, China on the day when the official Formula 1 Heineken Chinese Grand Prix 2020 would have originally taken place. Drivers will join the race remotely, with a host broadcast live from the Gfinity Esports Arena from 6:00pm (BST) on Sunday April 19 – a change from previous weekends where races have started at 8:00pm.

The broadcast which will be available on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch and Facebook channels, is expected to run for 1 hour 30 minutes, with a qualifying period where grid positions will be determined based on the drivers’ fastest lap time, followed by a 28-lap race. The Virtual Grand Prix will also be broadcast live with international broadcast partners including in the UK, Sky Sports F1 and Sky Sports Main Event.

In addition to the Chinese Virtual Grand Prix, the F1 Esports Series China Championship will kick off its 2020 Season on Sunday with a Pre-season Event. The 2020 Season will retain much of the same structure with qualification, regional finals, and the Grand Final – but will see the introduction of a brand-new Pro League which was not part of the 2019 Season. The Pro League is a 22 race online championship following the same point scoring mechanic as the Formula One World Championship. The top ten racers from the Pro League driver standings will enter the Grand Final directly and compete with other racers from the regional finals for the chance to sign for an official F1 Esports team.

The Pre-season Event itself will include two online exhibition races. The first will be an All-Star race at Circuit de Monaco where top racers from the 2019 Season will put on a show, whilst the second will be a Pro League preseason race at Shanghai International Circuit where the Pro League teams will get a chance to showcase their talents in front of fans.
This weekend’s F1 Esports Pro Exhibition race will precede the virtual Grand Prix – and is set to begin at 5:00pm (BST). The broadcast will be available on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch and Facebook channels as well as selected TV broadcasters and is expected to run for 1 hour.

Julian Tan, Head of Digital Business Initiatives and Esports said:
“From an esports perspective, the last Virtual Grand Prix was one of our most successful events we’ve ever put on, so it’s great to be back and be able to continue building something that has proven hugely popular. It’s very important to us that we can give our fans something to look forward in these uncertain times, so to see such an impressive list of returning drivers is fantastic. We hope the racing action is just as thrilling and fun as last time out!”

LIAM PAYNE, IAN POULTER AND SIR CHRIS HOY JOIN F1 DRIVERS FOR F1 ESPORTS VIRTUAL BAHRAIN GRAND PRIX

March 22nd, 2020 by Jenny Marshall

Music artist Liam Payne, professional golfer Ian Poulter and six-time Olympic Gold medallist Sir Chris Hoy have all been confirmed on the grid for this evening’s virtual Bahrain Grand Prix.

The trio will be joined by a variety of F1 drivers past and present, including Lando Norris, Nicholas Latifi, Nico Hulkenberg, Stoffel Vandoorne, Esteban Gutierrez and Johnny Herbert.

The event will consist of a qualifying session followed by a 28-lap race around the Sakhir circuit, with all 10 Formula 1 teams represented by two drivers each.

Fans can watch all the action from 8pm GMT on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch and Facebook channels, as well as F1.com. The Virtual Grand Prix will also be broadcast live with international broadcast partners including in the UK on Sky Sports F1, Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Mix (Sky channel 145). Please find a full breakdown of the grid for the virtual Bahrain GP below:

Formula 1 launches Virtual Grand Prix Series to replace postponed races

March 20th, 2020 by Jenny Marshall

Formula 1® has today announced the launch of a new F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix series, featuring a number of current F1 drivers. The series has been created to enable fans to continue watching Formula 1 races virtually, despite the ongoing COVID-19 situation that has affected this season’s opening race calendar.

The virtual races will run in place of every postponed Grand Prix, starting this weekend with the Virtual Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday March 22. Every subsequent race weekend will see the postponed real-world Formula 1 race replaced with a Virtual Grand Prix*, with the initiative currently scheduled to run until May**.

The first race of the series will see current F1 drivers line up on the grid alongside a host of stars to be announced in due course. In order to guarantee the participants safety at this time, each driver will join the race remotely, with a host broadcast live from the Gfinity Esports Arena (or remotely if required) from 8:00pm (GMT) on Sunday March 22.

The series will use the PC version of the official F1 2019 PC video game, developed by Codemasters, and the first virtual GP on the Sakhir track will be a 50% length race with 28 laps. The broadcast, which will be available on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch and Facebook channels, is expected to run for 1 hour 30 minutes, with a qualifying period where grid positions will be determined based on the drivers’ fastest lap time.

Due to the wide variety of gaming skill levels amongst the drivers, game settings will be configured in such a way to encourage competitive and entertaining racing. This includes running equal car performance with fixed setups, reduced vehicle damage, and optional anti-lock brakes and traction control for those less familiar with the game.

The series is strictly for entertainment purposes, to bring racing action to fans in this unprecedented scenario the world has been affected by, with no official World Championship points up for grabs for the drivers.

During non-race weekends, Formula 1 will also be hosting online exhibition races, where fans from around the world will be given the chance to go head-to-head with F1 drivers. More details of these events will be available across the official Formula 1 social media channels in the coming weeks.

Julian Tan, Head of Digital Business Initiatives and Esports said: “We are very pleased to be able to bring some light relief in the form of the F1 Esports Virtual GP, in these unpredictable times, as we hope to entertain fans missing the regular sporting action. With every major sports league in the world unable to compete, it is a great time to highlight the benefits of esports and the incredible skill that’s on show.”

Frank Sagnier, Chief Executive Officer, Codemasters added: “We’re excited to be a part of the new F1 Esports Virtual Grand Prix Series. With sporting events currently on hold around the world, it’s great that the official F1® video game can help fill the void by bringing together an exciting line-up of talent to race online during the postponed race weekends. It’s going to be competitive, action-packed, and a lot of fun for everyone involved.”

*Grands Prix not available in the 2019 official F1 video game will be replaced with an alternative Grand Prix.
**The F1 Esports Virtual GP initiative will be extended beyond May if the coronavirus pandemic results in further Grand Prix cancellations/postponements.

About Formula 1®
Formula 1® racing began in 1950 and is the world’s most prestigious motor racing competition, as well as the world’s most popular annual sporting series. The 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship™ runs from March to November and spans 22 races in 22 countries across five continents. Formula One World Championship Limited is part of Formula 1® and holds the exclusive commercial rights to the FIA Formula One World Championship™. Formula 1® is a subsidiary of Liberty Media Corporation (NASDAQ: LSXMA, LSXMB, LSXMK, BATRA, BATRK, FWONA, FWONK) attributed to the Formula One Group tracking stock. The F1 logo, F1 FORMULA 1 logo, FORMULA 1, F1, FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP, GRAND PRIX, PADDOCK CLUB and related marks are trade marks of Formula One Licensing BV, a Formula 1 company. All rights reserved.

Formula 1© announces first ever F1 Esports China Championship winner

January 6th, 2020 by James Bralant

Formula 1 today announces the winner the inaugural F1 Esports China Championship, following an intense battle at the Hui Space, at the world-famous Shanghai Stadium on 4th and 5th January.

One hundred racers from all over the country headed to Shanghai to take part in the two-day event, which saw Tang Tianyu from the East Region claim the championship title with Yuan Yifan a close runner-up.

Following their triumphant win Tang Tianyu and Yuan Yifan will be invited to participate in the 2020 F1 Esports Pro Draft in London against other top racers from all over the world for a chance to sign with an official F1 Esports team.

Over the course of the Grand Final which was watched by 1.6million concurrent viewers at its peak, all the racers were put through their paces, with only the top 40 making it to the second day of knockout racing. From there, the pool was thinned even more, dropping down to a final group of 20. This group then fought in two final races, around Silverstone Circuit in Great Britain, and the neighbouring Shanghai International Circuit.

Fans could watch racers compete live over the course of two days via HUYA, with the final race also broadcasted live on Great Sports TV, Renault Driver Academy and F2 driver, Guanyu Zhou, also joined a well-known panel commentators including Li Bing and Pan Yongyong, to give fans a real insight into the world of esports. Renault Vitality F1 Esports Series driver Jarno Opmeer was also in attendance.

While the F1 Esports China Championship may have concluded for now, the journey has just begun for Tang Tianyu and Yuan Yifan, as they head London later this year to compete to be selected by one of the 10 official F1 Esports teams!

Julian Tan, Head of Growth & Esports, Formula One said:

“The first season of the F1 Esports Series China Championship has been a great success, with qualification spanning across six major cities in china and attracting over 10,000 registrations with 5,000 participants. Across the four regional finals, six million people tuned in online, with an average peak of 250,000. The Grand Final also saw a huge spike, with 1.6 million people watching live, demonstrating the real value of expanding the series into China.”

2019 F1® New Balance Esports Series records largest ever audience

December 18th, 2019 by James Bralant

Bringing the excitement and exhilaration of Formula 1® to a new generation of fans around the globe, the 2019 F1 New Balance Esports Series drew its highest ever online audience of 5.8 million. This represents an impressive uplift of 76% year on year in F1’s third ever season of the F1 Esports Series, demonstrating the huge growth and potential of the series. The 2019 Series’ online viewership numbers alone (5.8 million) surpass 2018 Series’ total online and TV viewership numbers (5.5 million).

Cementing F1’s position at the forefront of the e-racing wave, 169 million social media impressions (66% growth year on year) and 27 million online video views (35% growth year on year) of F1 Esports content were accumulated over the course of the series on F1’s own social platforms. In a clear demonstration of how the sport is reaching a new, younger and more digitally minded audience, 79% of viewers tuning in to the series were below the age of 34 years old.

2019 was the biggest and most exciting F1 Esports season to date as David Tonizza, the first pick from the 2019 Pro Draft as well as Ferrari Driver Academy Hublot Esports Team’s first ever esports driver, went on to beat the rest of the field, in the final race, to become the 2019 Drivers’ Champion. His achievement embodied the living room to podium narrative that is at the heart of the F1 Esports programme and it was an impressive first showing for Ferrari in esports as well.

The dramatic 2019 season culminated with Red Bull Racing Esports securing their first Team’s Championship title. The team’s championship was incredibly competitive with Red Bull having to fend off fierce competition from Ferrari Driver Academy Hublot Esports Team, Alfa Romeo Racing F1 Esports Team and Renault Sport Team Vitality – all 4 teams coming into the Grand Final could have taken the title! Over the four Pro Series live shows, Red Bull consistently demonstrated why they are the top team on F1 2019, the official game of the FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP™, clinching 9 podium finishes, 3 of which were wins, across the 12 race season.

Sean Bratches, Managing Director, Commercial Operations at Formula 1 said:

“The 2019 Formula 1 esports season has been a tremendous success and a huge congratulations to both Ferrari’s David Tonizza and Red Bull Racing Esports team on their hugely impressive titles. I also want to thank all our partners for helping deliver this year’s success. We are really excited about the progress we have made this year with a 65% increase in interest in the series compared to last year, our highest ever online audience of 5.8 million and 169 million social media impressions. We are looking forward to next season, with some of China’s regional participants coming to the pro draft and the potential for other nations to join the fun. Our best days are ahead of us and we are delighted by the great progress in 2019.”

Other big news from the 2019 season:

• A record breaking 109,000 players attempted over 1.4 million laps to qualify earlier in the year, representing a massive 65% increase in participation and 40% increase in number laps attempted year on year;
• The first year all ten official Formula 1 Esports teams participated in the series, with Ferrari entering the world of esports for the first time in their history;
• A record breaking $500,000 cash prize fund for 2019, more than double year on year;
• Formula 1 confirmed that F1 Esports was heading to China with the launch of the F1 Esports Series China Championship, in partnership with Juss Intellisports – the first regional competition of the series history where the champion and runner-up will earn final spots in the 2020 F1 Esports Series Pro Draft and the chance to compete for a seat with one of the official F1 Esports teams.

Frank Arthofer, Director of Digital and New Business at Formula 1 said:

“The 2019 series has been exciting, and full of action and this year’s figures are a testament to the great entertainment our esports series is delivering to fans. We are continuing to reach a new fans with growth across our online and TV audiences as well as growth across our digital platforms. With 79% of viewers tuning in to the series below the age of 34 years old we are really excited about the future and already getting ready for the 2020 season.”

Julian Tan, Head of Digital Business Initiatives & Esports at Formula 1 said:

“The growth of esports in Formula 1 continues to accelerate. Not only has 2019 been our most ambitious esports season to date by way of our tournament and events, but it was also the first season we had all 10 official F1 teams participating, with Ferrari entering the world of esports for the first time in their history. In addition, we launched our first ever regional series in China in search of the next Chinese esports stars as well as have launched a mobile esports qualifier on F1 Mobile Racing for the first time to feed into the programme next year.

The massive growth in viewership and engagement is testament to the strength of our esports proposition. I am confident that Formula 1 Esports will continue to grow and broaden the opportunities for the next generation of motorsport fans and brands to engage and invest in this burgeoning space as we continue to break down borders into our sport through esports and gaming – the growth in viewership and engagement this year is a prime indicator of this.”

The F1 New Balance Esports Series is operated in partnership with Codemasters, the developer and publisher of the official Formula 1 video game franchise and Gfinity, one of the world’s leading esports companies. New Balance, the footwear and lifestyle brand was the title sponsor of the competition, being fully integrated into the series, with all drivers wearing New Balance socks and shoes whilst racing in the Pro Series. Fanatec also remained on board as Official Sponsor, supplying the championship with elite and advanced equipment and DHL celebrated their 50th anniversary this year with special activations in F1 Esports including the DHL 50 Fastest time trial invitational event ahead of the 2019 Pro Draft which has been shortlisted by the European Sponsorship Awards 2020 for Sport Sponsorship of the year.

For more information on the F1 Esports Series visit www.f1esports.com.