Deutschland Strikes Back: German F1 GP “Definite” to Return

At a quarterly report session of Liberty Media, Formula One Management (FOM) CEO Stefano Domenicali confirmed that the German Grand Prix will “definitely” return to the F1 calendar, though not at short notice. The official said much remains to be done, but Germany is deemed a key market, with the current F1 grid featuring two German teams, Mercedes and Audi. “I think now Germany wants us to think in the medium term if they can come back into the calendar, or even more important, being, as it was 20 years ago, one of the most important markets for Formula 1,” Domenicali said. 

Germany’s Hockenheimring last hosted an F1 GP in 2019 and currently runs GT and drag racing championships. The country also has the globally renowned Nürburgring, known as the Green Hell for its difficulty and danger, particularly in its longer configuration, Nordschleife, where Niki Lauda suffered his notorious accident in 1976. The track is much safer now, although accidents still occur, mostly during public track days. Fans and racers alike continue to hold the Nürburgring in high regard, especially following Max Verstappen’s participation in NLS and 24 Hours of Nürburgring. Yet F1’s return to the circuit is not on the table, as it remains too demanding for modern single-seaters.

Domenicali also mentioned that Germany could offer lucrative prospects as a growing market because of the planned acquisition of Sky Deutschland by the country’s major broadcaster, RTL Group. Sky Deutschland secured a long-term exclusive F1 broadcasting rights deal in 2021. The acquisition includes bringing together Sky subscribers in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland and creating a premium RTL+ service. “Definitely RTL was an important step in our need to have more reach in that market,” said Domenicali. “I’m pretty sure that in the future, when it will be the right negotiation, the market with Germany will be different, for example, from what we have now in Italy or in the UK. There will be a digital platform or other streamer that will apply for the tender, because that’s a market that possibly will have that opportunity to put us in a situation that we need to make the right decision for the future.”

The F1 calendar has a maximum of 24 slots – expected to remain in 2027 – and several are already committed for the medium term. However, if a deal can be reached, many would welcome Germany’s return to the pinnacle of motorsport, even if Hockenheimring rather than Nürburgring hosts the Grand Prix. 

Four-time Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen says demand for motorsport depends first and foremost on whether a country has talented racers, especially if they reach F1. He points to Germany’s experience, with three world champions competing in F1 between 1991 and 2022: Michael Schumacher (WDC 1994-1995, 2000-2004), Sebastian Vettel (2010-2013), and Nico Rosberg (2016). All three appeared on the grid simultaneously from 2010 to 2012. Now Germany has only Nico Hülkenberg in F1, whose long but less trophy-filled career finally brought a first podium after 239 starts at Silverstone last year.

Despite Mercedes’ dominance in the 2026 F1 season and its strong position over the years, motorsport’s popularity in Germany has significantly declined, partly due to environmental concerns. German viewership of the Japanese GP was down 21% compared with 2025. “Just look at Germany. Everything has to be very green, but at the same time, it’s also the home of the major automakers. Fortunately, they still have great races there, like the 24 Hours of Nürburgring, but even those kinds of events are already difficult to organise,” Verstappen added.

As they often say, money is the root of all evil. FOM needs a party willing to foot the hefty bill for the race. Governmental support would matter greatly, as hosting F1 requires substantial investment, while Germany and Europe’s current economic situation is not particularly promising. Hockenheimring, which held F1 races intermittently from the 1970s until 2019, came under new ownership in 2024. Emodrom Group now controls 74.99% of Hockenheimring shares and has invested EUR 250 million to expand the Porsche Experience Centre and construct a new Motorworld hotel. Emodrom also initiated negotiations with FOM over Germany’s potential return to F1. 

“It was Hockenheim that connected with us,” Domenicali stated. “They are developing the motorsport park there with a different objective. If they want to discuss a possible F1 event, of course the investment needs to be different – because our platform needs to have a different kind of investment.”

As former German F1 racer Timo Glock says, “I think we have great facilities to do it. The Hockenheimring is sold to a private company, and they want to invest a lot of money into the ring and make it more attractive. But at the end, we just need financial background in Germany to host an F1 race.”  

F1 has largely favoured a “pivot to Asia” due to the region’s greater governmental interest and financial capacity to host Grands Prix, but fans’ interest in Europe and the complicated geopolitical situation in the Middle East have prompted FOM to reconsider the championship’s geographical focus. As Domenicali claims, “We are watching the growth of Europe, because it's becoming an important market again.”

Europe faces tough competition from other parts of the world, though. There is already a long queue of countries seeking to host an F1 GP, with particular interest from Rwanda, South Africa, Thailand, South Korea, and Argentina. South Africa is considered one of the three most likely options, alongside Argentina due to the “Colapinto effect” and South Korea, given its previous experience hosting F1 and the championship’s interest in expanding its presence in Asia. China and Japan are also willing to add a second F1 race. According to Domenicali, “negotiations are progressing very well in Africa,” but FOM is not in a hurry because the short-term F1 venues are already in place. As for China, he said: “For the moment, we want to stay with one race in China because we need to consolidate the market stronger.”