Formula 1 (F1) came into the spotlight in South Korea in December 2020 for the first time since the last Korean Grand Prix in 2013. Half-Korean, half-Scottish racing driver Jack Aitken became the first driver of Korean descent to race in F1, driving for the Williams team at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix. Notably, both Korea’s Taegeukgi and the U.K. 's Union Jack raced around Bahrain, with both flags sewn onto Aitken’s racing suit for his F1 debut.

F1 is the highest class of single-seater car racing. Since the first Grand Prix in England in 1950, it has grown into a multi-billion-dollar industry overseen by the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA). In the 2021 season, they plan to race in 22 countries over a nine-month period. A point system is used to decide not just the FIA Formula 1 World Champion for the season but also the most successful car constructor (team). Twenty drivers race each other, with two drivers per team. F1 cars are the fastest road-course racing cars, reaching forces of up to 6.5 lateral g around corners, and top speeds of up to 360 km/h. Compared to other motorsports, where there is much less of a focus on driving technology development, F1 incurs immense costs through innovation between and around the rules set out by the FIA. Even with an introduction of a budget cap this season to control development costs, teams are allowed to spend up to 145 million USD.

Despite Korea being the fourth-largest passenger car manufacturer in the world, F1’s popularity in the country has not matched its prowess as an automotive industry. With a 70-year-long history, F1 is considered one of the most glamorous sports in the world, featuring sponsors like Rolex, Microsoft, Logitech, and Coca-Cola. Driver base salaries range from just under 1 million USD to a reported 55 million USD for the reigning world champion Sir Lewis Hamilton. With such prestige revolving around a sport directly related to one of the most prominent industries in Korea, it is a surprise that F1 hasn’t picked up popularity. To understand why it has failed to gain traction in Korea, the purpose and requirements of motor racing have to be taken into consideration alongside Korea’s societal context.

F1 is traditionally a European sport, and a very financially exclusive one at that. Its Eurocentrism means that both its heritage and language are difficult to adapt in a culturally conservative country like Korea. Car racing evolved from a post-WWII investment boom in Europe supported by many unused airfields that were converted into racetracks. While this was going on, Korea had a civil war that has had resounding effects to this day. 

Financial considerations are also a barrier to F1’s popularity in Korea. The sport’s financial exclusivity has two dimensions. The first is the team running cost. Teams have an estimated annual running cost of 200 to 300 million USD, and any new teams wanting to join the F1 grid must pay an entrance fee of 200 million USD. This is intended to keep stability in the share of income to each team and to protect the value of existing teams, but this presents a significant financial hurdle for teams wanting to join F1. Team presence in a country is one of the biggest factors in developing a fanbase in that specific location, but this initial investment into team creation requires justification via proof of income. The lack of F1 fans in Korea results in the investment not being justified, and the lack of a Korean-based team means there is a serious barrier to introducing Koreans to the sport — a very cyclical state of affairs.

The second dimension to financial exclusivity is the viewing rights. Currently, all Korean TV is free-to-air. This is not the case with F1 coverage. Rights to stream F1 were won by Sky UK in 2019, a pay-to-stream service. This paywall makes watching F1 very unappealing to those not used to this type of service. Even with F1 offering F1TV Pro as an alternative online streaming service that provides more detailed data about the races, it has not been released in many geographic regions, Korea included.

Aitken understands the challenges involved in increasing the popularity of F1 in Korea. Nevertheless, his debut towards the end of last year was well-received by Korean F1 fans, who were reportedly very interested in how to get involved. He recognized that “traditionally, Formula 1 hasn’t been as popular in Korea”, and that “interest in motorsport is still young” while speaking to the South China Morning Post. Nevertheless, he stated that interest is growing in Korea through people following the racing series because of his heritage. He has been optimistic about the possibilities of a Korean market for F1 due to the prominence of motoring manufacturers in the region. Aitken hopes that Korea’s enthusiasm for sporting entertainment can carry over to motorsports, which could open up great possibilities for international collaborations. With Aitken amongst F1’s rising stars, the future of motorsports in Korea is very much open to change.