Formula E Looks to Celebrities to Boost Its Visibility
While Formula 1 is typically associated with glitz and glam, its sister electric racing championship Formula E is also getting the star-studded treatment.
The open-wheel single-seater motorsport championship for electric cars was first started 11 years ago and is similarly governed by the FIA. While the series has gained popularity in motorsports-heavy places such as the U.K. and South America, Formula E has been looking to gain momentum in the U.S.
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The series boasts 11 teams with top car manufacturers of Porsche, Jaguar, McLaren and Maserati and top talent across other motorsports series including former Formula 1 drivers such as Jacques Villeneuve, Stoffel Vandoorne and Felipe Massa and has lured in promising young talent over the years.
As the sport looks to gain exposure, Formula E airs live on CBS Sports on the weekends and is in partnership with Roku to watch post-race. With races already held in S?o Paulo and Mexico City, the championship will race in Miami; Monaco; Tokyo; Shanghai; Berlin; London; Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and Jakarta, Indonesia, this season.
The Hankook Mexico City City E-Prix also saw race viewership in the U.S. surge, with a 10.5 million cumulative audience on CBS — a record-breaking watch for any Formula E race shown in the U.S. The 11th season launch of the Formula E season in S?o Paulo was the biggest opening round on television, with 40 million fans watching.
“This strong start to the 11th season — with our new and existing broadcast partnerships delivering record audiences in our key markets — is a testament to our accelerated fan growth and the exciting racing spectacle put on by our elite drivers in their new cutting-edge Gen3 Evo cars,” said Aarti Dabas, chief media officer of Formula E. “With 14 more races to come, we are firmly on track to deliver our biggest season ever and take our racing spectacle to more fans than ever before.”
The series has now created “Evo Sessions” involving the world’s most followed actors, athletes and social media personalities — Brooklyn Peltz Beckham, Sergio Agüero, Lucien Laviscount, Tom Felton, Vinnie Hacker and more will team up with one of the Formula E teams leading up to a track event held on March 5 to 6 at the Miami’s International Autodrome at the Hard Rock Stadium.
As part of their partnership, the personalities will engage with their team pairings and receive an intense training program on what it takes to be a Formula E driver. With simulator sessions, physical conditioning, driver coaching, hardware customization and engineering briefings captured for social media, the experience aims to give fans an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the world of Formula E and the technology behind the sport, with a feature-length documentary planned to come later in the year.
“I’ve loved motorsports all my life, so when the opportunity came to be a part of Evo Sessions with Formula E, I jumped at the chance,” said Beckham. “I love it as a sport, but it’s an incredible opportunity to actually get behind the wheel and experience what it takes to compete at the top level of motorsports. The performance of the cars is insane, so I’m pleased I’ll be learning how to get the most out of them from the best.”
Another celebrity getting involved in the electric motorsports space is Idris Elba, who announced his strategic investment in the Cupra Kiro team. Recently, IMG also penned a multiyear deal to exclusively manage and license the worldwide video archive rights to Formula E. In 2019, Formula E did a one-off season-ending race in Brooklyn.
“We wanted to do something that has never been done before in motorsports,” said Jeff Dodds, chief executive officer of Formula E. “Something that would give audiences and our fan base a unique perspective into the world of a Formula E driver and our series through the eyes of some of their favorite online personalities. Formula E is the fastest-growing motorsports in the world, and we have a clear target to hit half a billion fans by 2030. And by collaborating with some of the biggest names in popular culture right now, we’re able to open up Formula E to a whole new fan base.”
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