Liberty Media has revealed the substantial financial losses suffered by the Formula One Group owing to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday the corporation revealed its results for Q1 (which covers the months of January, February and March) of its various brands, which includes the Formula One Group.
Revenue crashed from $246m in the same period last year to just $39m in 2020, a reduction of 84 per cent.
Events were due to take place in Australia and Bahrain during that period but no race fees or broadcast fees have been recognised for Q1 2020.
Primary revenue, which covers race fees, broadcasting income, advertising, and sponsorship, fell by $198m to $13m.
Most of that $13m income for Q1 2020 “consisted of sponsorship contracts associated with non-race related rights”
“Other F1 revenue decreased due to zero revenue recognised from the Paddock Club and other event-based activities and television production activities.”
The total income loss for the entire Formula One Group moved year-on-year from $58m to $152m.
It also cautioned that under current circumstances it expects no races to take place in Q2, which covers April through June.
Its operating costs not associated with team payments fell year-on-year from $52m to $43m due to the absence of races and the deferral of non-critical expenses.
It cautioned that “certain costs were incurred during Q1 in anticipation of the start of the 2020 race season, including freight, travel and technical costs relating to the Australian Grand Prix, which was cancelled on the eve of the event.”
The company added that cost-cutting measures, including salary reductions and the UK-government-supported furlough scheme, will not be felt until the Q2 results are published in July.
No payments have yet been made to teams, compared to the $96m distributed across Q1 2019, “since such payments are recognised on a pro-rata basis across races on the calendar.”
