The Dutch Grand Prix will disappear from the Formula 1 calendar after 2026, the series has announced.
The race at Zandvoort returned to the championship just three years ago. It has proved a hugely popular event with large crowds turning up at the three races held so far, the first two of which were won by the Netherlands’ multiple F1 world champion Max VerstappenThe event promoters have agreed a one-year extension to ensure the race continues in 2026. F1 announced the final Dutch Grand Prix will be a sprint event.
Dutch Grand Prix director Robert van Overdijk said they were no longer able to accept the financial risks of holding the race.
“We are a privately owned and operated business, and we must balance the opportunities presented by continuing to host the event, against other risks and responsibilities,” he said. “We have decided to go out on a high with two more incredible Dutch Grands Prix in 2025 and 2026.
“We wanted to take this step while our event is adored and supported by passionate fans, residents, and the Formula 1 community. I want to thank [F1 CEO] Stefano Domenicali and all the team at Formula 1 for the hard work that has seen multiple contract extensions realised and the Dutch Grand Prix be such a success.”
The F1 calendar is already due to expand in 2026 as a new race in Madrid will take place, requiring one existing round on the schedule to make way.
Domenicali said FOM and the promoter considered different options to keep the race on the calendar. “All parties positively collaborated to find a solution to extend the race, with many options, including alternation or annual events on the table, and we respect the decision from the promoter to finish its amazing run in 2026,” he said. “I want to thank all the team at the Dutch Grand Prix and the Municipality of Zandvoort who have been fantastic partners to Formula 1.”
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Jere (@jerejj)
4th December 2024, 8:21
Unsurprising & I wouldn’t count Montmelo getting dropped after next season despite the current deal, which could be Spanish GP rather than circuit-specific, though, without knowing better.
Alternatively, Imola could also get dropped after next season.
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
4th December 2024, 8:47
It’s certainly hard to imagine Catalunya staying on the calendar after 2026 – and I wouldn’t be hugely surprised if Imola disappears too.
Sorry to see Zandvoort go. They did an excellent job renovating the track and it hasn’t failed to attract a large and enthusiastic audience. F1 should value that more – look how thin the crowd was last weekend.
The only potential upside I see is if it creates room for Spa to remain, which is at least better suited to F1 than Zandvoort, and a more spectacular venue.
Fer no.65 (@fer-no65)
4th December 2024, 11:47
Precisely because it wasn’t really suited to F1 is why I’m sad to see it go. It’s incredible that they managed to race modern F1 there. It was spectacular seeing the cars boucning around after the karrousel
Stephen Taylor
4th December 2024, 11:49
Will Imola even have a race in 2026? I thought it’s contract was over at the end of next year.
Jere (@jerejj)
4th December 2024, 12:32
@keithcollantine I couldn’t agree more & I’ve more or less assumed this whole time since the Madrid GP announcement that Circuit De Catalunya gets dropped after the 2026 season at the latest, as I’ve also struggled to see it being able to co-exist with Madrid for more than a single season at max.
Urvaksh (@thedoctor03)
4th December 2024, 13:07
Hi @keithcolantine, the crowd in Qatar was not thin at all. It was sold out! Do you mean they were not as loud or do you mean they don’t have enough seats for more folks to attend?
cdavman (@cdavman)
4th December 2024, 16:29
Yes I had to laugh when at the start of the race when they put the “Weekend Attendance” graphic up on the screen. It merely said “Sold Out” and avoided quoting any numbers… unlike say Silverstone, Spa, Red Bull Ring, Zandvoort and others where they actually quote some sizeable attendance figures, normally a few hundred thousand across the weekend.
I thought at the time that was to hide the fact that “Sold Out” wasn’t actually that many tickets…
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
4th December 2024, 17:11
Ah, yes, that’s suspicious!
Alianora La Canta (@alianora-la-canta)
4th December 2024, 17:22
@cdavman Qatar’s business model partly depends on generating artificial exclusivity. Liberty was probably told to put “Sold Out” because it didn’t have any more tickets to sell. The total number of tickets Qatar sells is 40,000 because, in turn, Qatar knows it can charge more money per ticket by having fewer tickets available.
anon
4th December 2024, 21:45
@alianora-la-canta from what fans who have attended that circuit say, it depends quite heavily on what sort of ticket you are buying. If you want to get one of the luxury packages for the more exclusive seats, then it’s true that those do appear to carry a fairly hefty premium.
However, there have also been quite a few fans who have said that ticket prices for general admission and regular grandstand seats are actually pretty cheap compared to most circuits – Racing News 365 reckoned that the average ticket prices were only the 7th highest of all the circuits across the season.
Added to that, there have also been reports that accommodation and travel is also fairly reasonably priced compared to other venues, so it’s generally rated as actually being one of the more affordable races for the average fan to attend.
Matthijs (@matthijs)
4th December 2024, 8:29
Not surprising. Without Max the entire GP would not have held anyway. I must admit that the races in Zandvoort are much more entertaining than I feared beforehand.
There are very few (if any) GPs that can handle ‘the financial risks of holding the race’ and for me that is a clear sign that F1 should lower the costs for countries to host a GP.
Brett
4th December 2024, 10:07
Love the old skool challenge and flow of the track – massive loss.
MacLeod (@macleod)
5th December 2024, 8:28
The drivers will going to miss Zandvoort they loved the Qualifying on Zandvoort..
But it’s a money decision as Zandvoort doesn’t get money from the state and the prices to organize gets higher they can’t afford it anymore.
Moi
4th December 2024, 8:56
Sorry to see the race go, it was fantastic as a venue in terms of atmosphere.
I do hope we do not get another sandbox race added.
Red Andy (@red-andy)
4th December 2024, 8:56
Ah, that’s a shame. It was good to see a new (returning) GP on a traditional circuit rather than a purpose-built street monstrosity. But I’m sure the Dutch fans will continue to travel widely to attend GPs.
jmlabareda
4th December 2024, 9:04
This is an event that should be viable. It’s a great circuit and the current dominating driver is Dutch and with a huge following. The place seems always packed. I guess F1 is asking for too much money and can get that kind of money in some other heartless track, even with empty stands #shame
Martin (@f1hornet)
4th December 2024, 9:30
It’s so crazy that F1 chooses to have a model where races that have big, loud, sell out crowds feel it makes sense to end their contract. Are more new fans attracted to the sport by watching the Qatar Grand Prix?!
José Lopes da Silva
4th December 2024, 13:00
New fans are attracted by the drivers, and only after that, the cars.
Senna once said: “today or in 10 years, if there is still F1, the driver will be the center. The human element is what drives the passion of the spectator”.
He never mentioned the crowds or the grandstands.
Alianora La Canta (@alianora-la-canta)
4th December 2024, 17:29
@f1hornet New fans are, in the main, attracted by the social media take on F1 rather than the older methods such as TV or going to local races of whichever level the nearest track carried. A lot of them don’t even attempt to watch the races (not even illegally) because among other reasons, that’s time taken away from engaging in the speculative and creative aspects of the fandom. There are parts of the fandom who consider starting the interest via Drive to Survive old-school, let alone any older method barring being brought up in a family that already watched F1. (Admittedly, I get the impression a bunch of them would be more interested in visiting a race and watching it live, if sufficiently local, than watching one on their phones).
Alan Dove
4th December 2024, 9:38
It would be viable if the hosting fees actually reflected true market value. But we have state-subsidised Grand prix dominating the calender. What do you think that does to the price?
baasbas
4th December 2024, 13:21
@jmlabareda @Alan Dove
At the moment it is viable. But together with Silverstone as mentioned, these are the only events without government funding (imho the way it should be). The director explained that they need 3 days of sell out crowds to end up net positive for a race weekend. They have done that and foresee they’ll do it for the next editions. They just don’t want to be in a position where maybe interest will fade and they are forced to stop in the years to come. They’re not willing to take the risk.
Government funding and oil money are boosting the fees too much
I’m sad to see it go. If only for being one of the best tracks to show you don’t need to police track limits
anon
4th December 2024, 22:06
jmlabareda, it would appear that Dutch domestic politics are also playing a noticeable part in this, although this article has failed to highlight that.
The current Dutch government intends to significantly increase the amount of VAT charged on tickets for entertainment events, which would increase from 9% to 21%. van Overdijk has been rather outspoken about the impact of that increase in the VAT rate, and it seems that is actually much more of a concern for him right now.
MichaelN
4th December 2024, 9:32
Thank goodness! At long last F1 will be able to go to another government subsided track in the middle of nowhere to race in darkness without any annoying fans needing grandstands and toilets to be put up.
Money, money, money…
Sometimes I wonder why I even bother with this circus anymore.
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
4th December 2024, 12:19
Ha, ha. I agree! Definite progress here. Hopefully F1 can also locate some more non-purpose built, car park like, street circuits to replace these outdated and decaying places, popular with the general hoi polloi. We don’t need these types chasing after F1.
Now where’s my Rolex….
Michael A.
4th December 2024, 23:39
MichaelN
Two words sum it all up – ‘CORPORATE GREED’!
rpla
5th December 2024, 21:12
From the top-tier single seaters, Super Formula doesn’t suffer such issues with their racetracks.
SF circuits are all fast and technical, challenging for the drivers and with big elevation changes. Suzuka and Fuji are well known, and the latter even though a Tilke redesign is actually not that bad and encourages great racing. Autopolis and Sugo are little known jewels, etched on top of mountain ranges. All places with a lot of soul. Motegi is the only one I have reservations about, and it was a compromised design from the start due to it being built alongside/overlapping an oval. The mooted expansion overseas to South Korea at the Inje circuit, possibly happening next year, is another good layout located in the mountains. SF has access to great Grade 2 circuits unavailable to F1.
Shimks (@shimks)
6th December 2024, 9:37
Nicely put!
Massive shame to lose such an exciting track.
Alan Dove
4th December 2024, 9:34
State funding of Grand Prix inflates the price of hosting fees way above true market value. It’s not rocket science that a private venture, who actually has to consider supply and demand, will call it a day. Silverstone did as well, but manage to renegotiate given their relatively strong position on the calendar.
And F1 continues is long march to complete domination of motorsport culture, maybe a few more people need to understand just how thus was possible. It isn’t jst ‘Drive to Survive’.
Doh
4th December 2024, 22:58
Because no one has ever tried to compete with F1. F1 has it easy in that respect. The one time someone was getting close it was indycar. It was just very ‘convenient’ that the split happened…
rpla
5th December 2024, 21:22
For those who want top-level single-seaters with hard but fair racing Super Formula can be a viable alternative.
Stewards there are capable of upholding driving standards, and drivers regularly go through tight corners side-by-side and get through them unscathed (see e.g. latest Fuji race from this year). Penalties are imposed by the severity of the incident, as it should be, and consequences of accidents are taken into account for the penalties. Contrary to some racing bodies, drive through penalties are still viable penalties that get issued to drivers as needed, so drivers are more considerate about how they behave on the track. Incidents behind Safety Cars attract harsh penalties. Honest racing, where team manipulation of results (“team orders”) are very rare, and teams are not afraid to lose the Driver’s Championship and won’t impose team orders on drivers as long as the racing is fair. Similarly no outright cheating where a team manipulates results for another team (looking at you RB). No nonsense like DRS but instead a P2P system that provides an additional strategic element to the race. The P2P isn’t based on heavy batteries, so the cars remain light, but instead they have an intelligent setup that increases the fuel-flow available to the engine while driver pushes the button. Circuits are genuine driver’s circuits with challenging layouts and no silly gimmicks like acres of run off. No street circuits, as in Las Vegas or otherwise. Small tires that don’t explode and that drivers can actually push on (and racing is still great). Overall smart regulations that actually make sense.
James Bond (@jamesbond)
4th December 2024, 9:38
They are likely factoring in the possibility that Max Verstappen will leave Formula 1. Following his departure, it’s expected that viewership numbers for F1 will decrease significantly.
Craig
4th December 2024, 9:53
I would doubt viewership would drop
NM
4th December 2024, 10:16
at Zandvoort? i think 90% of the people in the Netherlands watch F1 now because of max, I used to be the weird guy watching cars drive in circles, now everybody talks about it.
José Lopes da Silva
4th December 2024, 13:01
I’m 100% sure viewership will drop in the Netherlands after Max. For some reason they were three decades without a race.
Jeanrien (@jeanrien)
4th December 2024, 17:00
Probably that they had to commit multi years and the risk of Max pulling the plug, lack of government backing, the need to be sold out for the 3 days. All put together is a real risk to take and can understand they decided not to.
At least it was nice, and different while it lasted and good they are not leaving because of bankruptcy.
oweng (@oweng)
4th December 2024, 10:01
Why have a race at an interesting and unique circuit that draws huge sellout crowds when you can sportswash another gulf state?
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
4th December 2024, 12:21
+ 1
Palindnilap (@palindnilap)
4th December 2024, 18:27
+2
Terrion (@terrion)
4th December 2024, 10:29
Shame that we lost this track while probbably keeping Qatar, Miami and other stinkers.
But if the goal is to return to 20 or less races per season, I’ll 100% support this decision. But I expect more circuits without any spirit being added to the calendar. How is it even possible that we don’t have a Kuwait GP yet?!
Keith Collantine (@keithcollantine)
4th December 2024, 11:15
I see no sign whatsoever that this is the goal. It’ll be 24 grands prix at minimum under the new Concorde Agreement.
Alianora La Canta (@alianora-la-canta)
4th December 2024, 17:32
@keithcollantine Is the FIA trying to end its rule of F1 (or end F1 altogether)? Because I’m still not seeing any sign the FIA can handle a calendar of more than 20 races.
bernasaurus (@bernasaurus)
4th December 2024, 10:32
This is saddening. Anyone who’s driven it in a sim knows it’s far more technical and demanding than you’d expect from an F1 circuit. Spa is incredible, but Zandvoort is incredible in the ways that Spa isn’t. The packed crowd look down on the drivers in a cambered bowl. It has brows and dips that Logan never seemingly managed to get a grip of.
I think it’s great that modern F1 ever considered it an option (obviously Max was the factor). But it shows that other tracks that seem ill-suited to F1 can also do it and be brilliant without sacrificing their character.
Dex
4th December 2024, 10:45
Who will replace it, Oman, Yemen or another UAE emirate (perhaps Dubai)?
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
4th December 2024, 12:22
A race in the UAE and one in Kuwait are definite musts for me. I cannot wait!
Tifoso1989 (@tifoso1989)
5th December 2024, 11:37
The Gaza GP with Netanyahu waving the checkered flag will be a profitable race for Liberty.
MacLeod (@macleod)
5th December 2024, 8:32
Talks were over a track in Africa according to the Dutch director…
Tifoso1989 (@tifoso1989)
5th December 2024, 11:31
Yemen has been torn apart with the ongoing war, it’s situated in the Gulf but it is far from being a rich oil country.
Kevin C (@kev-f1)
4th December 2024, 10:48
Personally I thinks its a Track that only came into play because of Max and not one of my favourites by a looooong way! Spa is a far better track with more overtaking opportunities, and I would keep it over Zandvoort any day of the week!
osnola
4th December 2024, 11:38
Most overtakes in a wet race 186 2023 Dutch Grand Prix
Dex
4th December 2024, 11:52
What matters more, number of overtakes, or quality of the duels? Most of the overtakes do nothing for me, zero excitement, but they count in the stats. Also good defense imo is equally exciting as a good, successful offensive move. Remember Brazil last year and Alonso and Perez? That’s what I mean. Now compare that to a long straight, DRS opens and overtake is done way before the braking zone. Those only remind me of my own overtakes, on a motorway…
We shouldn’t fall for their numbers-oriented PR.
baasbas
4th December 2024, 13:27
@kev-f1
For as much as I love Spa, I can’t get excited whatsoever about a Kemmel straight DRS blast pass, the move wrapped up way before the braking point..
If you would remove those from the equation, not that much passing going on there anymore.
Nulla Pax (@nullapax)
4th December 2024, 11:19
Leaves room for another USA track as well don’t forget …
very important to get F1 entirely based in the USA ….
very important.
James Bond (@jamesbond)
4th December 2024, 12:15
Maybe 2 races in Las Vegas
Phil Norman (@phil-f1-21)
4th December 2024, 12:23
Why not back to back! I’ll stop now.
Edvaldo
4th December 2024, 12:55
Well, just like when Alonso was the hot stuff, they raced at that Valencia track, then Vettel, and they brought back the German GP, now Max. At some point, they realize the events are not sustainable.
Unfortunately, these night races at the worst tracks seem very sustainable.
M2X
4th December 2024, 13:14
Zandvoort made a healthy profit of 6.5% over a revenue of 137 million. This year there was/is a dispute over unsold tickets that the sales company still had to pay 3.4 million over.
And it will be no surprise that F1 will charge even higher fees to organize a GP.
Add to that, that this years GP weekend schedule was very lean with only F1 Academy and Porsche Super Cup, which makes it difficult to excuse even higher ticket prices.
On top of the track is already packed on a Saturday and Sunday so its also difficult to fit more ppl in.
Alternation isn’t an option, it needs to be a yearly event that attracts regular visitors and keeps it was an annual tradition, the moment you alternate people start to forget when it is, and will probably make different plans.
It’s a damn shame because the track is an awesome historical track.
Robert Williams (@weiliwen)
4th December 2024, 15:10
I was delighted to see the race return, and so am disappointed to see it go away again. I cannot comment on the quality of the track, but for me it’s a nostalgic course: It was there that I saw my first (and to date, only) GP Race, in 1969, won by Jackie Stewart.
Chris Horton
4th December 2024, 17:02
Oh right.
Another oil state subsidised or characterless concrete block lined street circuit inbound then.
WOOOOOOooooooooooo.
Esploratore (@esploratore1)
4th December 2024, 17:08
Oh, great, a track that produces good racing, with unpredictable weather, is gone, but obviously those tracks in the desert owned by rich countries get to stay.
SpaFrancorchamps (@spafrancorchamps)
4th December 2024, 17:13
Beforehand I was very skeptical of this event. The track didn’t seem suited for F1. But it turned out to be one of the better tracks on the calendar these last years. Onboards look sick. Very unfortunate seeing this go.
Alonslow
4th December 2024, 18:07
Amazing track probably replaced by another awful street circuit.
ryanoceros (@ryanoceros)
4th December 2024, 18:10
Tragic. Zandvoort is a great classic track and the recent renovations have made it even better. After last weekend’s borefest with hardly anyone attending, I worry about the direction the sport is heading in. The most important factor for holding a race now is money, and it no longer matters where that money comes from. F1 should not be racing in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE, or Bahrain at all.
Wer
4th December 2024, 18:53
For me, Zaandvort has been everything that Hungaroring failed at as a track.
Both of quite similar in design and lack long straights for overtaking, BUT:
Zaandvort – is super cool to watch cars drive on
Hungaroring – is super boring to watch cars drive on
MichaelN
5th December 2024, 19:04
It’s one of the few tracks where these lumbering limos have that cool-factor that was so common with the small and nimble ’90s and early ’00s cars. I’m not going to pretend the track is great for racing, but the onboards are often a thrill to watch.