Formula One, also known as F1 popularly, is an international series of races that features formula racing cars, it has been named formula, because of the set of rules the cars follow. The spark of this sport lies in the fierce competition among the teams and their drivers, the intense clash between cars, and the feeling of thrill among spectators. The marvel engineering and mechanics of this sport is what makes this sport more unique and different from others. 

People think racing isn’t a sport, but a general entertainment, what they don’t realize, racing is more than that. F1 drivers need cardiovascular endurance, mental training and practice simulation to go and drive on the racetrack. With popular sports like Cricket, tennist and football; motorsports is deemed to be inferior and segregated separately, and hence it isn’t recognized as a formal sport. Even though Formula One is governed by a set of rules and comes under FIA (Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile). 

The story of how F1 came in India

The news of F1 circuit in India dates back to 2007, where the existing circuits in Madras and Coimbatore were there. However, a F1 circuit was to be built in Hyderabad and then chief minister of Andhra Pradesh was adamant on building a circuit in his state, the plan got delayed and ultimately cancelled due to budget issues. 

It was finally decided that a F1 circuit would be built in Greater Noida, on the recommendation of Hermann Tilke. The Indian Grand Prix was  about to happen in 2010, but got delayed and happened in 2011. The event nearly generated $170 million revenue, and was a huge success, nearly for three years. 

There were reports again that the Indian Grand Prix would return after a one year hiatus in 2015, Bernie Ecclestone, then owner of F1, said there has been a delay and the Grand Prix has been pushed back to 2016, due to tax issues. The abrupt politics ended the Indian Grand Prix then and there, and since then there has been no news of the return of the Indian Grand Prix. However, there were reports recently that suggested a new Grand Prix would be built in the gift city at Gujarat, but there were again doubts, whether it would be another temporary move. 

Akhilesh Yadav, then chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, had argued that F1 isn’t a sport, but entertainment, so taxes would be levied. And thus, due to tax disputes, the return of the Indian Grand Prix seemed difficult. 

The amount of fans and F1 viewers that were generated between 2011-2013 had been tremendous, and the fans have been waiting ever since. It marked the beginning of awareness of motorsports in India, and this led to the introduction of F4 in India, a part of Formula One Race program, that would make F1 more transparent. 

How did Fancode come into the picture? 

Fancode is an OTT and commercial sport company with streaming services at the website and application. It streams various international sports, ranging from football to motorsports. In the month of February 2024, Fancode got the broadcasting rights of motorsports, for the 2024 and 2025 seasons. This is also a new spurt of digital broadcasting with motorsports in the country, beyond cricket and hockey, and the streaming services could be available at all devices. 

Last year, Fancode couldn’t secure a deal, and the fans had to resort to F1 TV. This new agreement has offered new plans for the F1 fans, and for people who are keen to watch F1, but cannot watch due to the price plans of F1. 

Ian Holmes, the director of Media Rights and Content Creation in F1, has said in his statement, “I am delighted to announce that fans in India will be able to watch F1 on FanCode for the next two seasons. We have found a strong broadcast partner in them with expert knowledge on how we can best serve our 60 million existing fans and reach new audiences in India. Together, we will take our combined expertise to produce premium content that showcases the sporting spectacle that is F1.”

Fancode co-founder Yannick Colaco has said that this deal wouldn’t just provide F1 fans a starry experience, but would broaden the range of motorsport in the country. 

This isn’t the beginning of not just any new sport, but the beginning of a diverse scope of motorsports broadcasting in India, that includes Formula 2 & 3. F1 fans would get better offers than the previous streaming service they selected to watch F1. 

The commercial aspect of F1 into Fancode

The multiple services offered by Fancode for F1 fans, is a profit worthy step, for old and new fans. The price deals are convenient enough to buy a premium to watch F1 races and a lot less cheaper than  the usual F1 TV. 

Let us understand with the help of an example; A F1 fan could take a full season pass to watch 24 races including practice, qualifying and the race for ?299 and another option, which is for a new F1 viewer who is new to the sport, eager to watch the sport, could buy a pass for one race weekend, for just ?49 only. 

The Formula One season pass provides full access to main race, sprint race, practice and qualifying sessions, press conferences of the drivers, pre race content and podium ceremony. 

Along with the broadcasting of races, Fancode has also offered F1 merch for the fans including jackets, t-shirts for the teams like Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes. There are options and discounts available to buy sports merch, more price viability. 

The owners of Fancode and F1 believe that the emerging fanbase of F1 in India needs an established platform to watch races, that sports like cricket, football and tennis already has on OTT like Disney Hotstar and Sony Liv. For motorsports to reach people, digital broadcasting is necessary, especially when the target audience is youth. It has been observed that most of the fans are young females who watch F1, and the motive has always been to cater the 60 million existing fans and reach new audiences. 

What’s the key reason behind F1’s popularity and success in India? 

F1 has reached the young audience in quite a few years, another sole reason for F1 becoming quite popular is the Netflix F1 documentary ‘Drive to Survive’ which has brought a lot of people to watch F1 and become massive fans of the sport, the teams and the drivers. 

Who would’ve known drivers like Fernando Alonso or Daniel Ricciardo, but the popularity of F1 drivers are reaching a wider and diverse audience. The marketing and PR of F1 drivers has flooded the social media, which seemed appealing to the female audience. This has led drivers like Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris and Carlos Sainz to become popular among females. People who have no idea about F1, have started watching the sport because of these drivers.