(Motorsport-Total.com) – The on-site audience at the race tracks has increased by at least six percent in the first half of the 2026 Formula 1 season. This is according to the official spectator numbers published by most organizers after their Grands Prix. (Access our current spectator overview here!)
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However, a complete picture cannot be obtained based on these numbers: No data was provided for the races in Miami and Monaco. Miami did not release spectator numbers for the first time, Monaco already for the umpteenth time. Both Grands Prix had published unchanged spectator numbers in previous years.
Based on the nine race tracks for which official data is available for both 2025 and 2026, Formula 1 has gained around 191,000 on-site spectators compared to the previous year. Around 3.3 million fans followed the Grands Prix directly at the race track so far. Only in Shanghai did the weekend audience remain below 300,000.
Important to know: The spectator numbers of Formula 1 are cumulative values. All visitors over the entire race weekend (Thursday to Sunday) are counted. Those who are on site for several days are counted multiple times accordingly. So it is not the number of individual persons.
Records at several Formula 1 race tracks
Nevertheless, differences between the race tracks can be seen: In Barcelona, the audience stagnated with only a slight increase, while in Silverstone the spectator number rose by 64,000. Suzuka also enjoyed increasing popularity among Formula 1 fans with an increase of 49,000 spectators. And: No track recorded a decrease.
Silverstone is also the absolute leader among the nine considered race tracks over the past five years: Since 2022, the spectator increase alone has been 163,000. This corresponds almost exactly to the entire weekend audience at the best-attended Grand Prix so far in Qatar at Lusail, one of the least attended Formula 1 events.
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Furthermore, the 2026 Formula 1 season has already produced two new entries in the top 10 of the best-attended Grands Prix: Silverstone surpassed its own record from the previous year (500,000) with 564,000 visitors, and Melbourne now ranks third in this “all-time” ranking with 484,000 spectators. Interestingly: Besides Silverstone and Melbourne, only Austin is also represented in this ranking.
In addition to Silverstone and Melbourne, three other tracks reported individual spectator records: Barcelona (302,000), Spielberg (320,000), and Spa-Francorchamps (400,000). Montreal (360,000) and Budapest (310,000) matched their previous best values again.
The self-image of Formula 1 as an organizer
Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali therefore feels confirmed in his actions. He said in a press conference: “We have to make sure that people come to the race track and have fun. We are sold out because people like to be there and want to have an experience that only exists in this form there.”
The motorsport “king class” primarily sees itself as an entertainment platform and explicitly does “not compete with other sports,” as Domenicali explained: “We compete to create the most attractive events.”
“People today can just as well choose to go to the theater, cinema, a concert, or any other leisure activity. That is why it is so important to offer an experience with real content. The visit costs money – and this experience must be better than the alternatives. Otherwise, people will simply choose something else.”
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