F1 returns to Azerbaijan with high-octane race and entertainment programs Fans to be back to stands after a year break

Azerbaijan spares no effort in preparations for the upcoming Formula One race that will take place in the country’s capital Baku on June 10-12 this year.

The Baku City Circuit (BCC) operating company, as part of preparations for the 2022 Formula 1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, has already begun installation work on the racetrack that runs along the Caspian Sea promenade in downtown Baku.

Unlike the 2021 edition of the race, this year the competition will welcome F-1 aficionados back in the stands. BCC has already started the installation of stands on the territory of the Seaside Boulevard of Baku. The Paddock is also being prepared for the high-octane battle of the fast cars.

The motorsport event's return to Baku's streets promises big by bringing fans back to the stands after a year break and injecting fresh breath into the sports entertainment that has been silenced if not entirely, but to a large extent, by the COVID-19 pandemic over the last two years.

The slogan of this year’s event says it all: “F1 returns: to track and to stands!”

The 2022 Formula One Azerbaijan Grand Prix is the first large-scale sports event in Azerbaijan this year. Both locals and foreigners have already set their sights on the upcoming race. In 2020, fans were not allowed in the stands due to the coronavirus pandemic. The entertainment programs and concerts were also cancelled. So, the hunger for the race has doubled since then, with fans longing more for seeing their favourite singers buoy the audience and drivers flying toward the finish line.

“We see high interest from local fans, along with the interest from foreign fans, which makes us very happy. Currently, Azerbaijan, the US and the UK are among the top three countries, from where the tickets are purchased. In addition, fans from Spain, the Netherlands, Denmark, Russia, France, Norway and other countries are purchasing tickets as well,” BCC press secretary Turab Teymurov said, adding the entertainment programs will also be back.  

According to statistics data, the global audience for Formula One in 2021 reached 445 million viewers, jumping by three per cent from the previous year. This year, the number is expected to grow even further, given the relatively better situation with the COVID-19 pandemic than the previous year.

The upcoming race in Baku is expected to bring national tourism back to the good old days. Since the start of the pandemic in 2020, the tourism sector of Azerbaijan suffered seriously from its consequences. Worldwide restrictions negatively impacted the tourist influx into the country, which broke the record in 2019 with more than three million arrivals. The number curtailed by 4 times to 797,000 in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, while 791,000 foreigners crossed the country’s borders in 2021.

Formula One racing in Azerbaijan contributed positively to the influx of tourists and increase in revenues when the world was free of the COVID-19 pandemic two years ago. From its pioneering in Azerbaijan to 2021, the F-1 races generated a total of $506.3 million in revenues that were accumulated mainly by expenditures of the foreign visitors. In addition, to live spectators, the races in Baku have been watched by 90.2 million people on TV over the same period.

The Azerbaijani government has been easing the COVID-19 restrictions within the country, as well as for foreigners. In an order signed by the prime minister this month, the mandatory negative PCR test result for travelling to Azerbaijan has been abolished. According to unconfirmed reports, the land borders are also expected to open for arrivals.

So, a travel bucket list for this summer should include Baku. Nothing beats kicking the emotions high by watching the world’s fastest motorsport race and enjoying the beauties of the city.

Mushvig Mehdiyev