In July 2025, Aston Martin Lagonda completed the sale of its remaining 4.6% minority stake in the Aston Martin Formula 1 (AMF1) team for nearly £110 million ($146 million). This transaction valued the team at an impressive £2.4 billion, placing AMF1 among the most valuable teams in the Formula 1 grid despite having re-entered the championship only in 2021. The deal signals growing investor confidence and underscores the expanding commercial appeal of the Aston Martin Formula 1 outfit.
Comparing AMF1’s Valuation Within the Formula 1 Landscape
According to recent Forbes analyses, Formula 1 teams now command valuations starting at over $1 billion each, with the average team valued between $3.4 billion and $3.6 billion. Ferrari tops the list with a valuation as high as $6.5 billion, followed by Mercedes at $5.88 billion, McLaren at $4.73 billion, and Red Bull ranging from $3.5 billion to $4.32 billion. Aston Martin’s £2.4 billion (approximately $3.1 billion) allows it to secure a solid position within the top five most valuable teams, reflecting its rapid commercial ramp-up in just a few years back on the grid.
Factors Driving the Surge in Formula 1 Team Valuations
The remarkable rise in team valuations is supported by several pillars: the implementation of cost caps, a growing fan base particularly in the United States, and high financial returns on investments in elite teams. McLaren and Mercedes, in particular, have reported some of the fastest valuation growths recently. Ownership changes in 2025 further illuminate this trend. Bahraini sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat and Abu Dhabi’s CYVN Holdings acquired full ownership of McLaren Racing at a $5 billion valuation, shortly followed by Mercedes’ Toto Wolff selling a 15% stake to US billionaire George Kurtz at a $6 billion valuation.
This surge in monetary value underlines investor enthusiasm stimulated by the sport’s soaring popularity, driven chiefly by Netflix’s Drive to Survive series, which has introduced Formula 1 to a broader, younger audience worldwide.
AMF1’s Valuation Leap in Context of Previous Stake Sales
The recent £2.4 billion valuation marks a substantial increase compared to earlier stake sales. In 2024, US firms HPS Investment Partners and Accel Partners invested in AMF1 valuing it at £1.8 billion, while in 2023 Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll sold a stake to the US investment group Arctos Partners at a £1 billion valuation. This rapid climb over just a few years highlights Aston Martin’s accelerating commercial progress and growing share in the global F1 economy.
Jefferson Slack, AMF1’s managing director of commercial and marketing, expresses a belief that this valuation still undervalues the team’s true worth.
“It speaks to the health of the sport, and frankly, I think that’s undervalued,”
Slack tells Sportcal (GlobalData Sport).
“Our revenue multiple is still smaller than an NFL or NBA team. We have fewer teams, and we’re more global, so our risk profile is slightly de-risked.
Our future growth is very good. So not only can you grow the top-line value of the organization as a revenue multiple, but you should also be able to grow the multiple. So that’s in everybody’s best interest that we’re valued, from a financial standpoint, like an NBA or an NFL franchise.”
AMF1’s Commercial Expansion Fuels Valuation Growth
While on-track performance has been challenging, the team’s commercial growth has played a pivotal role in boosting its overall value. The expanding global popularity of Formula 1, particularly in the US market, has helped increase sponsorship and licensing revenue. AMF1 is expected to achieve a 30 to 40 percent year-on-year rise in commercial income for the 2025 financial year, an impressive growth trajectory for a team relatively new to the grid.
Slack highlights the exponential growth in the organization’s commercial operations since 2020.
“We’ve seen enormous growth on the commercial front,”
he says.
“We’ve grown every year – it’s probably 20x from 2020, so it’s been a huge growth for the organization based largely on the brand. It’s a fantastic brand. The sport is growing significantly, and other teams are also doing very well commercially. The pie is getting bigger. It’s not a zero-sum game; it’s very much an additive.
If you look back at our five-year plan from 2021, we would have never imagined getting to where we have so far commercially. That said, the team needs the revenue, as it continues to grow. Lawrence is a visionary who wants to build a world championship team, and that requires hiring some of the best people in the world.
We’ve gone from 300 or 400 people to 1100 today. So, the money is still needed. But the sport is in great health and Aston Martin, as well as almost all the teams, are doing much better commercially.”
Drivers Behind AMF1’s Commercial Success
Slack attributes the strong commercial momentum to a combination of factors, including the influence of F1 ownership under Liberty Media and the sport’s growing ties with the technology sector. The UK-based AMF1 team boosted its total revenue by 14.7% year-on-year in 2024 to £280.7 million, fueled by increased sponsorship and licensing contracts. Major partners such as Saudi Aramco and Cognizant generate more than $93 million annually, with the top five sponsorship holders including Puma and luxury brand LVMH responsible for 70% of total sponsorship revenue. Additionally, the team anticipates licensing income to quadruple over the next few years via collaborations with companies like Lego.
Slack celebrates Liberty Media’s impact in transforming the sport’s global profile.
“Firstly, Liberty has done an outstanding job managing the sport,”
he remarks.
If you were to look at F1 five to 10 years ago, you would’ve said it’s a very European-focused sport with some Asian element and one race in the United States.
Now there are three big races in the United States, and five in North America. With Drive to Survive and other initiatives like the F1 movie, the demographics have become much younger and more appealing to marketers. F1 has done an amazing job at that, especially cracking the US market. That is part of it, and why the pie is growing.
Secondly, and concurrently with that, technology continues to accelerate. AI partners are coming into F1. If you have a global tech business, the number one place to start would be F1. It’s global, and we’re a technology-based sport, authentically technology-based. So that’s been another very good thing for the sport. Those things don’t relate specifically to us as an organization; that’s the universe of F1.”
He adds that the team’s success stems from deliberate brand building, shaped by Lawrence Stroll’s vision and a concerted focus on building a commercial marketing structure designed to be rights-holder friendly.
“Additionally, we’ve executed well. We had the advantage of having an extremely small team in 2020 and were able to build a commercial marketing organization from the ground floor that was meant to be very rights holder-friendly. We do a lot around that, and it’s been very helpful for us. So those four elements have all contributed to it. We’ve been the beneficiary of an incredible boom in the sport, and we feel like we’ve executed well on that.”
Expanding Partnership Portfolio Sets Stage for 2026 Season
As AMF1 gears up for the 2026 campaign, it has secured multiple new partnerships to enhance its commercial foundation. In early March 2026, the team announced AI company Cohere as its official generative AI partner, emphasizing aspirations to drive AI innovation within the sport. Other recent commercial additions include energy drink Celsius, Swiss luxury watchmaker Breitling, AI software firm Cognition, and sleep technology brand Eight Sleep.
Welcoming @cohere to the team as our Official Generative AI Partner to help accelerate AI innovation. Learn more: https://t.co/LUnkYAw9Em pic.twitter.com/sEuWa3lmTI
In late 2025, AMF1 also brought on board global digital payments company CoinPayments through a multi-year agreement and renewed its longstanding partnership with construction equipment manufacturer JCB. The team begins its new technical works partnership with Honda in the upcoming season, reinforcing its competitive infrastructure.
The diversity of AMF1’s partner portfolio reflects the sport’s widening appeal. Slack points to deals with consumer-facing brands like Celsius and Breitling alongside traditional B2B technology companies.
Heading into 2026, the team counts nearly 40 active partners, with Slack hinting that additional sponsorship deals may materialize throughout the racing season, describing Formula 1 as a 365-selling cycle.
Breitling and Aston Martin. Two names born from a fascination with speed: one measured it, the other mastered it. Now @Breitling joins Aston Martin and @AstonMartinF1 as Official Watch Partner, connecting Aston Martin’s world of high performance cars with the precision… pic.twitter.com/2YVlXLcUzR
Securing Long-Term Branding Rights Elevates Team Value
In a strategic move strengthening its identity, the Aston Martin Formula 1 team secured exclusive rights to use the Aston Martin name, logo, and branding in perpetuity for its Formula 1 operations with a £50 million agreement. This ensures the team’s legacy and brand continuity are protected well beyond current commercial deals and sponsorship arrangements.
AMF1, having finished seventh in the 2025 constructors’ championship, transforms into a full works operation this season for the first time.
Slack explains the importance of such rights agreements on valuation.
“Businesses that are rights-related are valued on the length of the rights,”
he says.
“Liberty has a 99-year deal with the FIA. If it were a five-year deal, that would be a very different valuation. We had a deal with Aston Martin Lagonda through 2055, but now we have it, technically not in perpetuity because we still don’t own it, but it’s a forever license, and that is an excellent thing because that’s the value of the organization.
Not that Lawrence is looking to sell, but if you were to sell, you know that you forever will be Aston Martin, which, with Ferrari, are two of the most iconic motorsports brands, so there’s a value to that.”
Formula 1 Enters New Era with Teams, Rules, and Partners
The 2026 season ushers in numerous changes, including new regulations, cars, power units, and an expanded grid with the introduction of an 11th team. Cadillac returns American representation after a decade, marking the first new entrant since Haas joined in 2016. Cadillac’s team operation is backed by General Motors, working alongside motorsports conglomerate TWG Global.
This expanded 11-team grid marks the first time since the Manor Racing team folded in 2016 that such a field size has existed. To participate, GM and TWG Global paid a $450 million anti-dilution fee—more than double the statutory $200 million cap—to compensate existing teams for revenue dilution, making it the highest-ever entry fee in Formula 1 history.
Though the fee may appear discounted relative to market value, it reflects a strategic investment predicated on an anticipated broad return for the grid over time.
Slack voices reservations about the addition from Aston Martin’s commercial perspective.
“Selfishly, I don’t like it, because we must divide up the pie,”
he admits.
“There are some financial mechanisms. My job is to think about Aston Martin, and I understand that other people’s job is to think more about the general element of the sport, so I must respect their view.
But certainly, from an Aston Martin standpoint, it’s not helpful to us. I also think it was sold at a sharp discount to the real market value. There are two things: should you have an 11th team, and then what should have been the price? That’s not my job, and that’s not our area to get involved with.
It’s nothing against Cadillac, General Motors is an amazing organization, but sitting where I sit, I would prefer not to have 11 teams. And if there was to be an 11th team, I would have preferred it to be auctioned off at a market rate.”
Broadcast Deal with Apple Signals Streaming Transition in US Market
From 2026 onward, Formula 1 will partner with tech giant Apple as the new exclusive US broadcast rights holder, replacing ESPN under a five-year agreement. This deal, reportedly worth $700 million in total ($140 million annually), represents Apple’s largest sports rights acquisition to date and indicates a significant shift toward streaming media for motorsport in North America.
ESPN’s previous contract, which began in 2018 and ran through 2025, achieved record audience numbers, with the 2025 season averaging 1.3 million viewers per race in the US. The former deal generated $90 million in annual rights fees, considerably less than Apple’s new agreement. However, it remains uncertain if Apple’s streaming service will maintain similar viewership levels compared to ESPN’s linear broadcasts.
Slack comments on the risks and opportunities involved.
“Liberty is taking a slight risk, because they’re going from a much bigger universe of subscribers and viewers to a much smaller universe,”
he explains.
“But I know Apple is very focused on delivering in a big way. F1 is their premium sports asset, so they need to deliver. Hopefully, that all happens, but it is a challenge going from ESPN with the number of households that it’s got to Apple TV, but I’m confident that Liberty and Apple will do a great job with it.”
2026 Season’s Schedule and Global Reach
The upcoming Formula 1 calendar features 24 races across five continents, opening with the Australian Grand Prix and concluding with the traditional season finale in Abu Dhabi in early December. This expansive schedule underlines F1’s global footprint and continued attraction to diverse international audiences, a factor that contributes to the rising value of teams such as Aston Martin Formula 1.
Welcoming @cohere to the team as our Official Generative AI Partner to help accelerate AI innovation.
Learn more: https://t.co/LUnkYAw9Em pic.twitter.com/sEuWa3lmTI
— Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team (@AstonMartinF1) March 4, 2026
Breitling and Aston Martin.
Two names born from a fascination with speed: one measured it, the other mastered it.
Now @Breitling joins Aston Martin and @AstonMartinF1 as Official Watch Partner, connecting Aston Martin's world of high performance cars with the precision… pic.twitter.com/2YVlXLcUzR
— Aston Martin (@astonmartin) February 5, 2026
