Bernie Ecclestone: Sebastian Vettel's domination is harming F1 viewership

Bernie Ecclestone

F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has revealed that Sebastien Vettel’s domination of F1 has resulted in a gradual decrease in viewership. The Red Bull driver, Vettel, is the current title holder and has been so since 2010.

Ecclestone’s views come after the publication of F1′s global media report for 2013 that measures the number of people who have watched more than 15 non-consecutive minutes of the sport during the season.

Vettel clinched the 2011 F1 Championship with four races to go and the 2013 Championship with three races to go, on which Bernie Ecclestone commented, “The less-than-competitive nature of the final few rounds, culminating in the championship being decided ahead of the races in the USA and Brazil, events which often bring substantial audiences, had a predictable impact on reach.”

A year ago, the Formula One Management did not publish the total viewership figure, but it was approximated to be around 500 million, a drop of around 15 million from the confirmed 2011 figure of 515 million.

Ecclestone went on to add that F1 “sits at the very top of annual global sports audiences” as it covers 185 territories via its 111 broadcast partners who provide between them 27,000 hours of coverage. However, there were substantial drops in countries such as China and Brazil who lost almost 30 million and 9 million viewers respectively.

Germany too saw a drop of close to 10 percent in season long reach, with the gross figure for 2013 coming in at 31.3 million.

The upcoming season involves several new regulations and Ecclestone hopes that this will lead to a closer title face-off. “One thing I am sure of is that this coming season will not only offer a heightened level of unpredictability, but renewed excitement and fierce competition.”