F1’s fanbase is changing – and the ‘Netflix effect’ is just part of it | Wilnesh News

Nothing is simple in Formula 1. Driver weight, tire pressure and wind speed are measured to the fourth or fifth decimal place to determine how the car should be set up for any given race.

But when things go off the rails, things seem pretty simple. Since its release in 2019, Formula 1: Drive to Survive has been credited with both helping F1 break into the U.S. market and reinvigorating the sport itself. Not only do these narratives oversimplify Netflix’s impact on F1, but they obscure broader shifts in the way fans engage with sport.

Proponents of the “Netflix effect” often point to a 2022 poll that found 28% of U.S. adults considered themselves F1 fans, with more than half of them crediting Drive to Survive. . If this is true, that means there are an incredible 72 million F1 fans in the United States alone. Perhaps even more unbelievably, this could mean that nearly 71 million people weren’t actually watching the game in person. ESPN has the exclusive rights to broadcast F1 in the United States. An average of 1.1 million viewers per game in 2023less than IndyCar and Less than a third of NASCAR’s ratings.

One reason the show’s popularity hasn’t translated directly into F1 ratings is that races in North America don’t always take place during the day.However, this argument falls a little short of the mark when you consider that 2 million Americans tune in to watch 2023 Miami Grand Prix. In fact, the show’s impact on F1’s audience numbers was smaller than the headlines suggested. A Nielsen analysis Netflix added approximately 360,000 new viewers for the 2021 Miami Grand Prix, with crossovers from Drive to Survive to the race itself.

But racial data isn’t a good measure of Netflix’s effect. The show’s real impact was not in convincing 360,000 Americans to watch the race, but in converting the 71 million Americans who didn’t watch the race into becoming F1 fans.

Influencers such as Cowan-Brown are beginning to create content to engage a new generation of F1 fans, while creative agencies such as Feimei Park It aims to show people “the humanistic stories and lifestyle of motorsports”.

I guess all F1 fans are here today 40% are female, up from 8% in 2017, and the culture is more diverse. “Things like Netflix are fantastic,” McLaren CEO Zak Brown told CNBC. “It’s bringing in (female viewers), young viewers, North American viewers, and I feel like we’re just getting started.”

But while Netflix has helped introduce these diverse new audiences to F1, it’s the content creators who are really in charge. A study released by Buzz Radar in late 2023 found that people are now more likely to learn about F1 through social media (22%) or family (21%) than through Drive to Survive (14%).

“In particular, algorithms on YouTube recommend engaging viewers by showing team broadcast clips, game highlights, and historical documentaries,” the study explains.

The growth has been fueled by F1’s owner Liberty Media relaxing notoriously strict licensing rules that had banned drivers from posting paddock photos on their social media. This allows content creators like Cowan-Brown to bring the sport closer to Netflix’s diverse audience.

The ability to engage this audience makes content creators extremely valuable. TJ Adeshola, operating partner of Arctos Partners, a private equity firm that took a stake in Aston Martin last year, said: “Content creators have the ability to help brands explore topics related to F1.”

“Let’s say you have a mummy blogger or a food critic with such a strong and engaged audience, how do I create this content adjacency to attract those audiences to become fans of F1 and Aston Martin.”

F1 teams have become content creators themselves. YouTube series McLaren Unboxed, which followed Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri during race weekends, was on the platform before going off the air this year regularly exceeds 300,000 views (reportedly due Overlaps with “Drive to Survive”).

Finding new ways to engage fans on different social platforms is critical to the sport’s growth in global markets. Data from Buzz Radar shows that while Netflix’s influence is large, its influence is mainly concentrated in a few countries, with 37% of “Drive to Survive” new fans coming from the United States, 12% from the United Kingdom, and 9% from Australia. . news team told CNBC.

However, there is a broader narrative that needs to be managed. The growth rate of F1’s online fan base has many people Misdiagnosis As the sport reaches its “peak” in 2023, new fan numbers are down 46% year over year. explained. “But what you’re left with is deeper and more sustained engagement across digital channels.”

Keeping these new audiences engaged without alienating F1 traditionalists will be one of the biggest challenges facing the sport over the next decade. If it succeeds, it will have not only Netflix to thank, but also the rising stars of social media.