The Formula One motor-racing series experienced a drop-off of 19.2 million unique television viewers during the 2019 season.
Overall unique viewing numbers last year stood at 471m globally, which represents a decrease of 3.9 per cent.
The drop is reflective of increasing pay-television exclusivity in some markets, including the UK, where Sky now broadcasts all but one race exclusively
In announcing its global figures, Formula 1 sought to flag up its total global cumulative audience increase to 1.92bn, its highest since 2012. The cumulative measurement system counts ever viewer of every Formula 1 session separately so someone who watches several races will be included numerous times.
Commenting on the shifting dynamics of Formula 1 coverage, Ian Holmes, the series’ director of media rights, said: “It goes without saying that an FTA (free-to-air) broadcaster is going to generate a larger audience than a pay TV channel. That said, it is a bit of an oversimplification.
“Firstly, there are always commercial elements to be considered, but equally as important, is to look at who the viewers are, what the demographics are, and therefore who you’re addressing.
“Furthermore, pay TV often provides far more in depth coverage, and I think it would be fair to say that in the likes of Sky and Canal+ they have and continue to strive to improve the overall standard of F1 coverage, bringing to the fan far more than ever existed in the past – and they do a fantastic job.
“Then there are those people who are consuming F1 content on the different digital and social channels of our broadcast partners and our own F1 owned and operated platforms and channels.”
The total global television cumulative audience in the top 20 markets (Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Italy, Netherlands, Latin America, Middle East, Russia, Spain, Turkey, UK and US) reached 1.78bn.
Brazil, Germany, Italy, UK and the Netherlands were once again the top markets for viewers, with each country bringing audiences higher than 100m. Poland experienced a significant 256-per-cent increase following Robert Kubica’s return to the sport, while viewing figures in the Middle East and North Africa region rose by 228 per cent following F1’s rights agreement with Dubai-based media group MBC.
Other countries with double-digit increases were Germany (45.6 per cent), Netherlands (31.1 per cent) and Greece (18 per cent).
F1 also noted that 19 of the 21 races last year received a higher cumulative audience compared to the 2018 season, with the Italian Grand Prix, which was won by Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, experiencing a 20-per-cent year-on-year growth with 112m viewers.
Holmes added: “We have a similar size group of people watching more content and for longer than they did a year ago. This was of course helped by more compelling races and a more engaged fan base who have increased the amount of content that they are watching compared to 2018.
“We have found this with all F1 touchpoints. It’s no coincidence that 72 per cent say that the sport has improved in the last two years. Helped by improved digital & social, F1 TV, the launch of esports and the success of Netflix series ‘Drive to Survive’, the average number of F1 touchpoints consumed per F1 fan has also increased year on year as F1 becomes a more multimedia organisation – rather than just focusing on TV.”