Beyond the Track: How Brands Won Big in F1’s First Half

Sep 02, 2025 Best Practices & Insights

FORMULA ONE-1

A look at the media value & visibility brands earned during the first half of the 2025 Formula 1 season 

The first half of the 2025 F1 season wasn’t just about dramatic on-track battles — it was a record-setting period for sponsorship value and brand engagement. With a shift toward cultural moments, creative activations, and social-first strategies, Formula 1 continues to set the pace in global sports marketing.

$665M in Sponsor Media Value - Driven by Social and Cultural Moments 

From March to June, brands partnering with Formula 1 generated $665M in Sponsor Media Value across broadcast and social platforms. Social media drove 63% of total value — $417M — fueled by highly shareable content and event-specific activations.

TikTok delivered the strongest performance per post ($45.2K), more than triple Instagram’s $15.2K and five times YouTube’s $9.1K. Race weekends consistently produced engagement spikes, but the standout was May 4 — the day of the LEGO car activation at the Miami GP — which delivered $14M in a single day across social platforms.



Click here to unlock the full copy of the 2025 F1 Mid-Season Insights Report


Entertainment, Street Circuits, and the Value of Track Design

Formula 1’s evolution into an entertainment property was underscored by Apple’s production of F1 – The Movie, starring Brad Pitt, and reports that Apple may bid for the sport’s U.S. media rights. This could mark a pivotal shift in how the sport reaches fans and creates sponsorship inventory, especially in the U.S. market.

On the track, Monaco emerged as the most valuable race for sponsors thanks to its slower pace, high lap count, and street circuit layout — conditions that maximized signage visibility. Miami also ranked high for exposure, with street circuits proving especially effective for Barrier Signage and Banners.



Mid-Season by Numbers 

The best-performing content wasn’t always flashy—it was real. Fans responded most to posts that featured:

  • $665M total Sponsor Media Value

  • 300B social impressions with brand value

  • 2.5M brand exposures

  • 110+ brands earning $1M+ in SMV

 

Additional Insights: 

  • Ferrari drove $73M in social media value, topping all teams despite not winning a race.

  • McLaren remains the only top team without a naming rights partner, a major opportunity given its record engagement.

  • Formula 1’s social sponsorship value is now on par with the NBA, signaling rapid expansion in the U.S. market.

    Click here to unlock the full copy of the 2025 F1 Mid-Season Insights Report.

 

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