The Grand Prix World Championship (GPWC) has today (Oct 26), issued the following statement:

Today, GPWC Holdings B.V. appointed International Sports and Entertainment AG (iSe), a leader in global sports marketing and management, to start building immediately the operational and commercial structure for a new open-wheel motor racing series, to begin no later than 2008.

Following extensive benchmarking of the world’s major sport and motor sport events, a group of global experts from sports marketing, motor sport, business and entertainment has been brought together with the single goal to create the new pinnacle of motor sports. The project team is preparing the ground for a Grand Prix racing series that will maintain the strengths of Formula One, while eliminating its weaknesses. Accordingly, the New Series will be built around the interests of the sport’s key stakeholders - the public, the teams, circuit owners and other core partners.

Prof. Jürgen Hubbert, Chairman of GPWC Holdings B.V: "We have been more than patient with the current management and governance of Formula One, but recent developments have underlined the need for a structure that guarantees a stable and prosperous future of the sport. GPWC is very satisfied to have secured the services of iSe. Its strong shareholder base and wide-ranging management experience with global sports events such as the FIFA World Cup and the Olympic Games makes iSe our clear partner of choice."

George Taylor, President & Chief Executive Officer of iSe: "iSe is excited to be involved with such a unique and prestigious challenge, and ready to build a sport that will truly exceed the expectations of fans, participants and business partners. The dedication of our shareholders and partners as well as the professional background of our team will ensure that the New Series will reach benchmark status in every area."

Since its announcement in May 2001, GPWC has been in negotiations with the commercial rights holder of Formula One (SLEC Holdings Ltd) about the future structure of the sport, focusing on four core objectives:

To ensure a long-term stable platform for the sport

To significantly improve the economic benefits for all participating teams

To reach the broadest possible global audience

To operate transparently

On 19 December 2003, a Memorandum of Understanding that incorporated these objectives was signed by the Directors of GPWC and SLEC shareholders (Bayerische Landesbank, JP Morgan, Lehman Brothers and Bambino Holdings) as well as Bernie Ecclestone. However, due to SLEC shareholders’ failure to comply with key points of the agreement, GPWC ended negotiations on 23 April 2004 and resumed its preparations for the New Series.

iSe (International Sports and Entertainment AG) is a leader in global sports marketing and management, founded as a strategic joint-venture between Dentsu Inc., the world’s largest advertising agency, and Publicis Groupe S.A., the world’s fourth largest and fastest growing communications group. Together, Dentsu and Publicis have a client portfolio that numbers over 10,000.

iSe provides a full range of professional services to the world’s leading sports federations including sponsorship consulting and sales, media rights, licensing and merchandising, hospitality and event management.

iSe management has extensive experience in the commercialisation of sports rights, having worked on the world’s biggest sports events over the last 25 years – including global properties such as the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA European Championship, the UEFA Champions League and the Olympic Games, as well as sports bodies such as FINA (swimming) and IAAF (athletics). iSe is the exclusive FIFA partner for the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany hospitality program.