F1’s Las Vegas gamble hits a speed bump

The glitz and glamour of Formula 1's Las Vegas Grand Prix, while visually spectacular, failed to deliver the expected financial windfall in its second edition in 2024.

Instead, last November’s event delivered a sobering wake-up call, raking in numbers that left commercial rights holder Liberty Media scrambling to recalibrate.

The Strip’s high-stakes showcase, meant to cement F1’s American dominance, underperformed, and now the series is doubling down with a revamped ticketing and hospitality playbook for 2025.

The Financial Fumble

The cold, hard truth came courtesy of Liberty Media’s chief accounting officer, Brian Wendling, during Formula One’s Q4 and full year conference call last week with analysts

“The Las Vegas Grand Prix did miss expectations, primarily on ticket sales,” he admitted, his words a gut punch to F1’s brass.

Despite a dazzling 2024 season that saw Paddock Club revenue soar and freight deals fatten the coffers, Vegas stumbled.

“This was offset by softness in certain hospitality offerings at the Las Vegas Grand Prix,” Wendling added, painting a picture of half-empty luxury suites amid the Strip’s glow.

The fallout stung deeper than a bad hand at blackjack. F1’s payments to its 10 teams climbed from $1.215 billion in 2023 to $1.266 billion last year, but as a slice of operating income, they shrank – from 62.6% to 61.5%.

“The majority of the miss that you guys are calculating based on the team payment was Vegas-related,” Wendling confessed.

With teams already prickly about Cadillac’s looming arrival as an 11th squad – likely diluting their pot – the Vegas shortfall sparked grumbles in the paddock.

New CEO Chang Rolls Up His Sleeves

Enter Derek Chang, Liberty Media’s new CEO, who grabbed the wheel in January 2025 and who emphasized the swift action taken to address Vegas’ financial underperformance.

“The economics for Vegas missed internal expectations on revenue and OIBDA,” he acknowledged, but he’s not folding.

“The team has moved very quickly, however, to enact changes that will benefit 2025 and support a financially successful race for F1 and continued growth and positive impact for the Las Vegas community.”

Chang’s got data – two years of it – dissecting what sold, who showed up, and where the cash bled out. His fix? A full-throttle overhaul.

“We are making further revisions to the ticket product and pricing strategy, leveraging this data, and as importantly, we are actively managing our cost structure,” he explained.

Out goes the old playbook: ticketing’s coming in-house for a “high-touch” local vibe, a lesson learned from 2024’s missteps. The London office now runs the show, integrating Vegas ops to squeeze every ounce of efficiency.

“This change leverages the strong organisation we have in London today across commercial, finance, and more,” Chang added. “At the same time, we are bolstering certain parts of the local Vegas team."

From Flop to Future: Vegas’ Halo Still Shines

F1 fans would be ill-advised to write off Sin City. Chang’s adamant the Grand Prix remains F1’s crown jewel stateside.

“To put on an event like that in the short amount of time that our teams in Denver and London were able to do over the last couple of years has been pretty impressive,” he boasted.

The halo effect—surging U.S. fandom, media buzz, and sponsor cash—still dazzles.

“We’ve talked at length about the benefit to the F1 ecosystem as a whole,” he said. “I think we all here were disappointed by some of the financial metrics in the early going here. But those, in my mind, are all durable and fixable.”

After a $300 million land grab to lock in the Strip Circuit, F1’s bet isn’t a three-year fling—it’s secured until 2032. Last year’s general admission debut didn’t fill seats as hoped, but Chang’s tweaking the formula.

With a retooled 2025 event, F1’s aiming to turn Vegas from a financial cautionary tale into a winning hand – one that keeps the champagne flowing and the teams grinning.

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