South Africa Seeking Massive Sum From Investors To Fund Costly Formula 1 Return

Formula 1's potential return to the continent of Africa in the next few racing seasons has turned into a heated financial battle that could cost over $100 million in outside investment.

As of now, South Africa, Rwanda, and Morocco have all stated that the nations are throwing their hats in the ring to bring Formula 1 racing and the small economy these races bring with them, back to Africa by 2027.

South Africa has emerged as a front-runner for this race as upgrades have been made to their historic Kyalami Circuit that hosted F1 from 1967-1985 and 1992-1993.

Now, according to Bloomberg, Sports, Arts and Culture Minister Gayton McKenzie has asked six firms to pledge a total of $100 million to the effort after receiving approval from the South African Government.

South Africa has Made Significant Strides to 'Win' The African Grand Prix Battle

Investment from financial firms is not the only step that South Africa has taken to host a Formula 1 Race weekend. In June of this year, the FIA approved plans for the Historic Kyalami Circuit to upgrade to a Grade 1 certification.

What does this mean? The track will undergo safety and infrastructure tests and upgrades over the next three years. These upgrades will come from the team behind the Miami Grand Prix's street circuit buildout, Apex Circuit Design.

The biggest draw for South Africa to host, of course, is that there would be a significant boost to the largest economy of Africa. Additionally, South Africa hosted the 2010 World Cup that, although, is a different sport, indicates that the infrastructure is in place to host a global sporting event.

The Growing Cost of Financial Backing for South Africa

Although the infrastructure of the host city and the upgrades to the track are two pieces of the puzzle to bring F1 to Kyalami, as previously stated, money has to be raised by the government.

The aforementioned $100 million investment will presumably be used to cover the Formula One Management Ltd. (FOM) fees of entry to hold a grand prix over a 3-year period. This cost has gone up since the previously reported $50 million of investment in January.

According to Bloomberg, South Africa's Representative has also been in contact with FOM over the past month, but allegedly no formal bid has been made by the country as of yet.

All in all, for Formula 1 to truly be a global sport, many agree that there must be a race in Africa in the coming years. With the 2024 FIA Awards being held in Rwanda, it seems that the governing body of Formula 1 feels the same way.

With the 2026 schedule already set, it will be a race against time to raise the $100 million investment and upgrade the Kyalami track to meet the 2027 F1 schedule deadline.

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