DF1 closes debut season with best result in 2024, but Formula E loses considerable TV viewers in Germany

It was not a good year for Formula E in Germany - apart from Pascal Wehrlein's first German world championship title win. Due to the change of broadcaster at short notice before the start of the season, the new and still largely unknown broadcaster DF1 took over and, as expected, was unable to match ProSieben's ratings. DF1 ended its debut year with above-average ratings though.

Formula E only had a few weeks to find a new TV partner for the important German market before the start of the season in Mexico City due to ProSieben's cancellation at short notice in December 2023. It found one in DF1 - via a partner model with the Austrian broadcaster ServusTV. Even before the start of the season, it was clear that DF1, as a new channel that had only gone "on air" two weeks earlier, would not achieve anywhere near the figures of ProSieben.

The start of the season was nevertheless promising with almost 700,000 viewers reached - just under 15,000 less than ProSieben's average net reach in 2023! Two weeks later, DF1 fell back to earth. Almost all relevant figures collapsed over the coming weeks. The races in Tokyo and Misano (Saturday) were the low point, when the broadcasts only reached an average audience of 6,000 and 8,000 respectively.

However, the figures for the season finale in London were once again impressive: DF1 achieved an average audience of 39,000 and 70,000 respectively - a season best. The market share was also above average at 0.4 per cent. Only in the advertising-relevant target group (all people aged between 14 and 49) was the broadcast not well received with a market share of 0.1 per cent.

Even if the comparison between ProSieben and DF1 is not really fair, if we look at the popularity of the channels, we have to make it. The average viewer figure fell from 249,000 to 26,000, i.e. by a good 90 per cent. In terms of peak viewership, DF1 achieved just over 14 per cent of the previous year's figure. The average total viewer figures were nevertheless more than 32 per cent, i.e. almost a third. The average market share fell from 2.2 per cent to 0.2 per cent in the overall TV market. In the aforementioned target group from 5.0 to 0.4 per cent.

Commentary: Re-live races a no-go, but options are limited

First of all, we in Germany can be happy that Formula E was able to find a TV partner within a few weeks after the short-termed and much-criticised departure of ProSieben. Basically, the broadcasts were also decent, e. g. the expert commentary.

What didn't work from the fans' point of view: The race in Monaco was not shown live, but time-shifted. Added to this was the information chaos before the final weekend, when not even we could reliably tell the numerous enquiring fans whether the London E-Prix would be live or not.

The fact that DF1 only ever broadcast qualifying from the duel phase onwards in the second half of the season was something we criticised a few months ago, but is also understandable from the broadcaster's point of view. Formula E needs to do something about the seemingly endless breaks in the current qualifying format.

DF1 will continue to broadcast Formula E next year. It will be exciting to see how the broadcaster itself - and therefore the Formula E ratings - will grow. But certainly not to the level that Formula E has been accustomed to in recent years. The opportunities are limited compared to a giant like ProSieben.