F1 revenue stabilises in third quarter of 2026 following earlier results impacted by cancellation of races.

The cancellation of the Saudi Arabian and Bahrain Grands Prix, were among the factors that led to a 38% drop in revenue in Q2, compared to the same period in 2025, when the sport hosted 9 events compared to 5 this year. Indeed, for the opening six months of the year, revenue was down 15%, again largely due to the fact that there were less races than in the same period a year earlier.

Q3 has seen one race more than in the corresponding period last year, and this has helped the sport see a revenue increase of 28% to $1.115bn, while for the 9-month period there is a minimal decrease from $2.498bn in 2025 to 2.496bn this year, even though there were two fewer races.

Operating income over the opening nine months has increased from $433m to $450m (up 4%), however adjusted for OIBDA (operating income before depreciation and amortisation) this fell 5% to $649m.

Team payments, excluding Concorde incentive payments, for the months July to September were up 24% to $422m for the quarter, though for the full nine months, year-on-year, they were down 5%.

"We are nearing the end of another extraordinary season, which has seen Kimi Antonelli, F1's youngest ever champion, crowned and the sport has never been stronger," said CEO, Stefano Domenicali. "Every race this season has sold out, with more than half setting attendance records and our digital impressions and audiences continue to grow.

"We are finding new avenues to expand our sport's global reach," he added, "including a landmark ten-year agreement to return to Africa with a future race in Rwanda. We will soon race on every inhabited continent.

"Looking ahead to 2027, we're excited to kick off the year in Milan with the return of F1 Live in an expanded three-day immersive spectacle and are thrilled to bring the Sprint race format to ten races as we build on our sport's incredible trajectory."

"F1 continues to deliver exceptional performance, extending its reach and influence while staying nimble throughout a dynamic year," added Liberty Media President and CEO, Derek Chang.

However, Liberty Media's founder and former chairman, John Malone has sold the majority of his voting power in the company, reducing it from 48% to just 3%. The buyer being Liberty Media, whose shareholders now have the say in matters where Malone previously had the upper hand, for example, in the sale of F1.

Previously, Malone had said that he would be open to the sale of F1 to the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund.

"It's a public company," he told the Opening Bid Unfiltered finance podcast last year. "If somebody gets carried away, and they want to buy it, and they're willing to pay more for it than the board thinks that they can deliver to the shareholders, then we would sell it. That's the bottom line."

Speaking in an investor call following the release of the Q3 figures, Chang said: "We're still focused primarily on growing the businesses that we have. And as we stated previously, sort of investing behind those businesses and growth plans that they have is probably the biggest priority as we think about other forms of capital allocation."

However, speaking on Tuesday, former president and chief executive officer of Liberty Media, and the man who oversaw its purchase of F1 in 2017, Greg Maffei said that he fully expected F1 to be "privately owned" within two years.

Asked by Sportico if he expected F1 to be a public company in two years, he replied: "F1 is gone. If I had to put my money down, that's where I'd put it."

However, he had a warning for potential buyers.

"The easy money's been made," he said. "The EBIDTA is up 3x in eight or nine years. It's not going to go up 3x again in the next eight or nine years."