By Selin Elif Köse
March
It’s lights out and away we go: Formula 1 2024 season is officially off to a start with the much anticipated Bahrain Grand Prix. As the silly season comes to an end, the whole Formula 1 community is still in shock with seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton's announcement of transferring to Ferrari in 2025. The soon-to-be-empty Mercedes seat, on the other hand, has been associated with many names, from two-time world champion Fernando Alonso to Williams driver Alex Albon, but the most jaw-dropping one without question is Red Bull’s very own Max Verstappen. While there has been plenty of news going on off the grid, there hasn’t been a significant change in the team’s performances on the grid compared to last year, except for Alpine, as the formerly midfield team has fallen way back. Red Bull is still comfortably leading with Verstappen winning and Sergio Perez becoming runner-up in both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The third place on the podium went to Ferrari drivers, Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc respectively, in the first two races of the season. Aston Martin and McLaren have also shown solid performance finishing in points while Mercedes has been facing obstacles with both the qualifying and race pace which left Hamilton ve Russell frustrated. However, this is not unexpected, as Mercedes started the last season on the wrong foot. Nonetheless, with the upgrades brought midseason, Mercedes quickly moved to the front of the grid again. With the end of the two-header in the Arabian Peninsula, the teams are now headed to Australia, returning to the Gulf for the last two races of the year. The recent increase in the number of races held in the Arabian Peninsula comes from the rise in investment from the Gulf countries, especially Saudi Arabia, which is currently advocating for the addition of a second race in Qiddiya. With their increasing stakes in Formula 1, Gulf countries have been accused of sportwashing. The Guardian journalist David Conn defines sportwashing as “the exploitation of sporting events to cleanse tarnished reputations." But why are the Gulf countries suddenly more interested in investing in Formula 1 and are they actually “sportwashing”?
The term gained significant traction after Qatar hosted the 2022 World Cup, but “sportwashing” has been long used for other Gulf countries as well with their huge investments in football and Formula 1 in recent years to cover up their political wrongdoings. Evidently, Abu Dhabi's investments in sports, such as ownership of English Premier League club Manchester City and hosting the final race in the Formula 1 calendar, serve as a diversionary tactic to deflect attention from its violation of human rights, which include unfair trials, limited freedom of expression, failure to investigate torture allegations, gender discrimination, and mistreatment of migrant workers, as condemned by Amnesty International. Perceptions surrounding Saudi Arabia and sportswashing are similar. The country is commonly known as an authoritarian state responsible for the execution of almost 200 people in the last year, fueling the humanitarian crisis in Yemen with a military intervention, linked to the murder of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi, as well as the persecution of women's rights protestors. Yet, Saudi investors succeeded in securing a spot in the F1 calendar for Jeddah in 2021. This was received poorly, as Formula 1 had just launched their “We Race as One” campaign a year prior in 2020 to condemn inequality & racism and promote inclusivity for everyone regardless of their gender, race, and sexuality.
Even though some argue that the Gulf states’ investment in sports is a means to improve their reputations on the international stage, it is also arguably fueled by desires for rapid economic growth. In 2016, Saudi Arabia’s Prince Mohammed bin Salman introduced Vision 2030, a long-term development plan to diversify the Saudi economy and reduce its dependency on oil revenue by developing other sectors such as tourism, entertainment, and technology while promoting private sector growth. Parallel to these efforts, Saudi Arabia invested heavily in Formula 1 by building a circuit in Jeddah and signing a 10-year contract with Liberty Media, owners of F1, to host at least one race each season in the country. Additionally, they advocated for a second race in Qiddiya by signing multi-million dollar marketing deals with drivers, including Fernando Alonso. This paved the way for other Gulf countries to develop their own economic plans to transform their oil-dependent economies into more sustainable and diversified ones. Qatar implemented the National Vision 2030 and constructed state-of-the-art stadiums for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The United Arab Emirates launched the "UAE Vision 2021" and "UAE Vision 2071" initiatives, investing heavily in sports by hosting events such as the Dubai World Cup (with horse racing), Dubai Tennis Championships, and Dubai Rugby Sevens, among others. They also backed the Emirati former rally driver Mohammed Ben Sulayem in the FIA Presidential elections for choosing the successor of Jean Todt. The eventual election of Ben Sulayem also naturally increased the Gulf influence in F1.
While this growing Gulf influence benefits the countries’ reputation, economy, and globalization, the administrative change has led to various political debates. Drivers such as Lewis Hamilton and former F1 driver and world champion Sebastian Vettel are actively engaged in activism for human rights and social justice. They often use their platform to speak out on global issues — Hamilton has worn a special design rainbow helmet supporting LGBTQ rights and a Black Lives Matter shirt before races. Hence, a major controversy emerged when The FIA (Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile) changed its International Sporting Code and endorsed drivers to receive written permission from the FIA to make any "political, religious and personal statements." FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem further said he would prefer the drivers to leave their "private personal agendas at home.” It was later clarified that the drivers were actually free to say whatever they wanted in the press conferences and this ban was only for formal events like podiums and grid ceremonies. This was just one of the multiple political debates going around in the F1 paddock. Even though there aren’t absolute restrictions on the rights of expression and political speech, the drivers and the teams have to be more careful with their words and actions in Middle Eastern countries.
In conclusion, sportswashing and economic goals lie at the heart of the rise in Gulf investment in sports and Formula 1. While it sometimes leads to political controversies, it benefits both the states and the sport. In a way, it also gives the drivers the platform to be vocal on the social injustices and inequalities in the countries they are racing at and draw attention to these issues on the global stage. It shouldn’t be forgotten that Formula 1 is a platform that reaches an immense global audience and it can be instrumental in shaping public opinion. Hopefully, F1 not only provides breathtaking races in the Gulf but also carries the “We Race as One” spirit to these countries.