Deep Dive: Gen Z x Formula 1: match made in heaven 🏎️

What's up with Gen Z and F1??? 🧐 We're here to investigate.

👋 Hi and happy new year! We’re The Z Link, a global Gen Z-led social media agency that helps brands reach our generation. The Digital Native, written by our Trends Reporter, Shaurya, takes a deep dive into niche internet micro-trends and subcultures, and analyzes them so you don’t have to. For any feedback, questions or suggestions, just reply to this email! <3

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Rev your engines, because we're about to dive into the relationship between F1 and the Gen Z market. We’ve all seen the TikToks, we’ve all seen our friends’ Insta stories. Many of us have nodded along without following the races or knowing what’s going on. And we’ve thought, at some points, “wait, when did everyone suddenly get so into F1?!”. Let us explain.

They say eyes are a window to the soul, but surveys? Surveys are a glimpse into the demographic of Formula 1. Everyone knows about F1 and always has, but how many knew about F1 the way they do now? Everyone's favourite motorsport started in 1950 and quickly became the most prestigious motor racing competition.

And with great prestige comes great power… in advertising. Engine manufacturers started to realise the potential of advertising by the end of the '60s, which they used to their advantage and made their logos bigger. It wasn't until 1968 that championship-winning team Lotus advertised the emblem of Imperial Tobacco on the side of their car. While this was the first advertisement, it started an inseparable relationship between advertisers, manufacturers and F1 teams (the most famous one being Marlboro).

Marlboro and F1 joined hands to sell a dream; a carefree lifestyle. They have quite a lot of chemistry, we love to see the two together. <3 Marlboro entered the game with British Racing Motors (BRM) in 1972 when advertising started slowing down, and the cigarette conglomerate needed itself to be visible again. In 1974, Marlboro and McLaren joined hands for what is possibly the most iconic collaboration in history. Remember how I talked about selling a lifestyle? McLaren's fastest driver, James Hunt, who was often spotted post-race with a cigarette in one hand, beer in the other and a lady by his side, helped sell the glamorous lifestyle that Marlboro was after. By the time advertising tobacco on cars got banned in Europe, the Marlboro branding was so strong that all they needed to do was use the Marlboro chevron and the barcode on the engine cover. Absolute goals if you ask me.

Even though Marlboro doesn't advertise on the cars anymore, it set off a domino effect that set the tone for advertising in F1. It was already a massive space for advertisers with a huge viewership. But the airing of Drive to Survive changed the entire demographic, and made the advertising space more prominent than it was. Formula 1 changed gears (hehe, do you guys think I'm funny, please believe I'm funny) and started to see a shift in their audience.

With Drive to Survive, a lot of the newer fans were Gen Z. In a way, the teams, advertisers, and even the manufacturers had to think about working with the newer generation instead of against them (Gen Z has the most extensive viewership and spends a heck ton of money, so cha-ching baby 💸). So do you know what the teams did? They used social media, of course. Drive to Survive started it, but turned the drivers and teams into brands (not that they weren't already) that can relate to the younger and possibly the most significant demographic. Not only does it help the viewership, but it gives the advertisers a larger space. It's a win-win situation all around.

Looking through the teams' social media, it's evident that they understood the assignment (slay). The drivers and the teams participate in trends that resonate with the audience. People are not only basing their favourite drivers on how they perform in races but also on their personal brand, and social media is the best way for drivers to create that.

If you really look at it, it's really the whole “old dog, new tricks” situation. They tried something new, got with the times and experienced success that I don't think they imagined. Look, you might think social media is this evil entity, which it can be, but look at what it does to brands and businesses. Look at how it converts viewership into business and community. What started as a space for teams to advertise themselves turned into something so big that it's seen as a lifestyle now.

So there you have it, folks! 🏎️ Formula 1 is making moves to capture the attention of Gen Z, and we’re here for it. With the combination of high-speed thrills and the drivers’ personal branding, F1 is set to dominate the entertainment industry for years to come. So let's buckle up and see what the future holds for the legendary racing series. See you at the finish line ;) 🏁

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Any questions/suggestions as to what we should cover next? Reach out to us and we’re always here to chat!

— Written by Shaurya, Trends Reporter at The Z Link

Connect with Shaurya on Instagram where she shares great content and lives her best influencer life as a fashion student in Paris. And she writes all of these great issues too. What can’t she do??? 🧐 Thank you for reading!