Force India and Sauber withdraw their complaint with the European Union

The independent teams Force India and Sauber filed a complaint in September 2015 with the Competition Commission operating within the European Commission. Both entities believed that the revenue distribution and governance of Formula 1 were unfair and illegal. The introduction of this procedure followed the European Commission’s desire to look into the management of the championship but awaited action from the teams.

Currently, the Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes, McLaren, and Williams teams receive fixed bonuses due to their status as historic teams, regardless of their position in the championship. This portion of commercial rights is not redistributed to the other teams.

F1 governance has somewhat changed since last year and the acquisition by Liberty Media. Indeed, the new owners seem to have the desire to create a more equitable environment within the championship. This will inevitably involve renegotiating the commercial agreements that will end by 2020.

This new development has convinced the Swiss and British teams to permanently withdraw their complaint with the executive institution of the European Union.

This is what the two teams announced in a joint statement: We have decided to withdraw the complaint we filed with the European Commission in 2015 concerning anti-competitive practices in Formula 1.

The statement also explains what motivated the withdrawal of this complaint: « We have been encouraged by the dialogue initiated following the appointment of Chase Carey as Chairman and CEO of the commercial rights holder of Formula 1 and his new management team. Their approach has introduced a new culture of transparency in the sport and demonstrates their willingness to discuss fundamental issues such as prize distribution, cost control, and engine regulations. »

The teams conclude their statement by acknowledging that their concerns remain justified, but the path of dialogue is now preferred: « We are pleased and reassured by the impartial and fair negotiating approach adopted by the new Formula 1 management towards all teams and their issues. Although the concerns that led to the complaint were fully justified, we believe that this new approach provides the necessary assurance that our concerns will be examined objectively, and we prefer to resolve the challenges facing the sport through dialogue rather than legal dispute. We want to support this transformational process in Formula 1 and have therefore decided to withdraw our complaint with immediate effect. »