42 million euros deficit for the 2014 Australian GP
As in previous years, the government of the State of Victoria - where Melbourne is located - announced that the Australian Grand Prix had experienced significant financial losses. This year's race thus faced a deficit of over 40 million euros.
The Australian Grand Prix /f1/news/18281-official-melbourne-to-host-f1-until-2020.html of Formula 1 has suffered heavy financial losses, with a deficit of over 42 million euros, as revealed this Wednesday by officials from the government of Victoria, the state where the city of Melbourne, which has hosted the race since 1996, is located.
The loss of the event, subsidized by the taxpayers of the State of Victoria, has increased by more than 18% compared to last season. This is not the first year that heavy losses have been recorded by Melbourne, but this has not prevented the southern Australian city from recently extending its contract with F1 until 2020.
But local politicians, starting with the Minister for Major Events of the State of Victoria, Louise Asher, justified themselves by citing the benefits of the race for the economy.
« The Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix alone generates between 351 and 411 full-time equivalent jobs and up to 28 million euros in economic benefits, as well as up to 25 million euros in media or advertising, » explains a statement published by Louise Asher’s office, cited by Reuters.
However, according to Denis Napthine, the head of the government of the State of Victoria, things should change as the new contract signed with FOM should help reduce the financial burden on taxpayers.
