Liberty Media is looking to expand the F1 Fan Festival to six to seven cities in the 2019 season with the addition of Tokyo and Germany to the existing list of cities.
The concept of F1 Fan Festival started in 2017 when the lone event was held in the UK’s Trafalgar Square. Liberty Media then increased the events to four for 2018 where it took place in China, France, Italy and the USA.
The original list had Germany for 2018 but it was replaced by Italy later on. The events in China (Shanghai), France (Marseille) and Italy (Milan) has been a success while the USA’s event in Miami is scheduled for this week alongside the US GP at Austin.
For 2019 though, Liberty Media is already working on an expansion with two more cities to be added as they look towards Tokyo in Japan and one in Germany. In addition, they are also looking to have one more city within China and the USA.
The full list is yet to be confirmed but the possible places currently stands as China (two events), Germany, Italy (Milan), Japan (Tokyo) and the USA (two events). Apart from the named places, Sean Bratches revealed of two more unnamed destinations.
“We’ve enjoyed great success with the Fan Festivals this year and we’re looking to create a broader programme next year,” said Bratches. “At the present time we are looking at an expanded schedule of six to seven events.
“We’re targeting a second festival in Shanghai, as like the US, we see great potential for F1 in China. That will also dovetail with our 1000th race, which gives it even greater resonance. Together with the race, it should be an amazing experience.
“Beyond that we are looking to visit Tokyo and Milan, and we are aiming to put on events in Germany and the USA, though the locations there are yet to be confirmed. We are also exploring two other destination cities.
“We’re in the early phases of planning for 2019 but, as mentioned, even though we are still evolving the concept of the festivals, we’ve had great success with this first year’s programme and we’re looking forward to bigger and better in 2019.”
Bratches believes that outside the core fan following of F1, there are many fans who are interested in the sport but are unable to get to the races. And so, the events like these helps them to get ever closer to the sport.
“We want to bring F1’s power, glamour and excitement to the people,” he said. “It really is as simple as that. We have a core audience that attends races, goes to the track, and that is heavily invested in the sport.
“However, we believe there are many more people who would be similarly passionate about Formula 1 if they were exposed to the incredible spectacle it can offer. So far we’ve had great events in Shanghai, in Marseilles and in Milan.
“Each of those has been enormously successful in engaging with new audiences and we’re sure this final event in Miami will be just as successful.” Preparations for Miami is in full swing with host of stars lined up – both from F1 and celebrities.
Despite the success, Bratches admits that the Fan Festival is still in the exploratory stage as they understand the demands of the fans – as to what suits them best during the events. They are also trying to form the number of days which ranges from two to four.