Case study: Formula One

Racing all the way to the bank

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Michel Foucault said that each age gets the madness it deserves.

Each age also gets the business model it deserves. The business model of our age is IP monetization. Madness, for Foucault, revealed normality. Business models reveal what’s valuable.

Formula 1 Grand Prix took place in Miami this past weekend, followed by Met Gala. Sir Lewis Hamilton, a British racing driver, was at both.

Hamilton competes in Formula One for Ferrari, having won a record seven Formula One World Drivers’ Championship titles (shared only with Michael Schumacher). He is also one of the co-chairs of 2025 Met Gala, themed “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” which celebrates the impact of Black culture on fashion.

Zoom out, and Formula One is the latest opportunity for cultural production. Races, race iconography, aesthetics, codes and symbols, drivers, fashion, racetracks, cars and their makers, experiences, fandom, lore and myths, celebratory toasts, trophies … are all sources of inspiration and intellectual property to capitalize on.

“We want our fans to have a 365-day relationship with Formula 1, and that means creating opportunities for them to engage with us not just at our 24 events, but online, in popular culture, and in their cities as well,” said Stefano Dominicelli, CEO and President of Formula 1.

Cue in the ever-expanding Formula One cultural influence playbook.

You’ll have to pay to access nine more F1 cultural products