The Las Vegas Grand Prix is this weekend, and it is probably the most unique race on the grid. Not only is it one of the few street races with a stretch down one of the most iconic strips in the world, but it also takes place at night against the backdrop of the lights of Sin City. However, it is due for renewal in 2027. What does Las Vegas Grand Prix’s future look like, and how does its unique ownership structure impact that?Let’s take a look.

Who owns the Las Vegas Grand Prix?

In most cases, Formula 1, owned by Liberty Media, partners with a local group or promoter to organize and promote the Grand Prix. In the Canadian Grand Prix, for example, Formula 1 partners with Octane Racing Group (which is owned by Bell Media) to effectively operate the race, and ORG then pays a fee to Formula 1 to do so.

The Las Vegas Grand Prix is different. Liberty Media owns and promotes the Las Vegas Grand Prix on its own. This is a unique challenge and opportunity for the group. This provides a number of opportunities and drawbacks.

What is the impact of Liberty Media owning and operating the Las Vegas Grand Prix?

On the one hand, they can test new offerings, including developing their own partnerships, new types of tickets, the impact of high-end talent at the opening ceremonies and more. This model of using the Vegas Grand Prix as effectively their start-up to test ideas is valuable.

The team has experimented heavily with ticket prices, charging some of the highest prices of any grand prix last year. This did not necessarily work out the way they expected, but it almost certainly provided good data.

The group has also made big investments in Vegas, allowing them to test the impact of infrastructure ownership and development on driver success, revenue, and more. Liberty Media purchased an old nightclub to convert it into a 300,000-square-foot pit building for team garages. The upper levels are used as a Paddock Club for 8,000 guests. The cost of the venture was $240 million for the land alone, not to mention the construction cost.

But on the other hand, they own the success or failure of the race entirely. While the early financial reports looked good in the first year, the 2024 financial reports were not promising. Liberty Media was specifically disappointed in the results of this event last year and the impact it had on the company’s share price.

This is a big risk for the group. With the United States facing much lower tourism numbers this year than in the past, will this have an impact on this year’s Grand Prix? And if so, what does that mean going forward? Is this a risk that the group is even willing to take on?

The future of the Las Vegas Grand Prix

F1’s CEO Stefano Domenicali has been publicly optimistic about this project, saying “this is an incredible grand prix on which we need to keep working and make sure that it will stay as we believe at the top of the range”.

However, with the race agreement ending after the race in 2027, there is always a chance that this race will be moved to a new location. The United States is the only country with three Grand Prixs, and with an expanding fanbase globally and only so many weekends to race, it may be worth exploring moving one to a new location.

However, with the amount of money that has already been invested in Vegas, it seems likely to be renewed for another term. There are reports that the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority are exploring an extension for another decade, which would make a good deal of sense.

The Las Vegas Grand Prix has been lucrative for the city and county

This has been a massive revenue earner for Clark County and the City of Las Vegas, easily their most lucrative event of the year in each of the last two years. With visitor counts down in Vegas, they need to do everything that they can to make it work.

It makes good sense as well for Liberty Media, given how much they have invested in the city, but there is still an opportunity for the same amount of money to be made in a new location. Africa is the only continent without a GP currently, but there are dozens of countries worldwide that are reportedly looking at the hosting rights for one of the race weekends. It would also be less risky for Liberty, as they would almost certainly have a local partner in the next one.

Odds are, given what they have spent already, they elect to remain in Vegas for another decade, but the financials and structural challenges do point to a potential breakup down the line. From a racing standpoint, it has been far from the most exciting race on the calendar, and given where it falls in the race calendar, there isn’t much intrigue this year around who will win.

The only exception is, of course, the F1 Academy final race, which will come down to the wire.

How Liberty Media handles the Las Vegas Grand Prix’s future is going to be interesting as its unique structure means it really could go any way.