New F1 Boss Chase Carey is keen to implement a new system in place of the current Concorde Agreement when it runs out in 2020, with one that is much more beneficial to everyone.
The Concorde Agreement is a contract between Formula One Management (FOM), the FIA and F1 teams, which sets out the terms by which the teams compete in races and how their share of media broadcasting royalties, sponsorship and prize money is awarded.
The current agreement is in place until 2020, and until that time nothing can be changed, but once that date is up, Liberty Media are determined to rip up the document and start again, as Carey explained to motorsport.com recently.
“We have the infamous document called the Concorde Agreement, which is this agreement that comes up every six to eight years – it comes up in 2020 – which defines the financial arrangements with teams.
“I think our goal is to create much more of a long-term partnership, not a partnership that has a point in time that you go out and renegotiate the next eight-year partnership, one where there’s a continuum.”
The American believes that stipulating a date by which the next agreement must be in place, puts pressure on those involved to be ready with a plan of action that will forge out the best deal for themselves, with little regard for the other parties affected.
“It creates gamesmanship. If you’ve got that point in time, you have people posturing and positioning, ‘what can I get out of it?’
“What I’d like to have is everybody’s priority being continually looking three years down the road, not looking at a specific point in time. I think they all welcome getting there, but we’ve got to drive it.”
Carey is confident that the teams will appreciate the benefits of his new plan, which he hopes will bring about a more sharing culture within the sport, but is also aware that change does not always come easy to some.
The current agreement definitely favours the bigger teams, with a large heritage payment and decision-making privileges set out for Scuderia Ferrari, before they have even started a race. That stipulation is clearly no longer fair or necessary, but is a benefit the Italian team have enjoyed receiving, and will likely be unwilling to give up without a fight.
Nevertheless, the American hopes they will eventually come round to his way of thinking.
“Really what we’re doing is we’re saying we’re working as partners that compete on the track, but share a vision of where we’re going as a sport, and share the benefits of doing that together.
“It’s a sport that historically was a little bit every man for himself, and how do you game each other and the like, and that leads to ‘one plus one is one and a half’.
“If you could pull together and figure out what is the right path forward for everybody, you make ‘one plus one is three’.
“That’s our goal, to change the culture of this sport, which has had some very unique aspects to it, and create a new culture. And, I feel good about it so far, there’s a real welcome-ness to wanting to do that.
“There’s no question of changing a culture that’s been embedded for that long will take some time, but I think it’s a transforming opportunity to really build a longer term, healthier relationship that benefits us both.”
