The United States Congress has questions for Formula 1: Why US politicians are now taking an interest in Andretti’s rejected bid
“Dear Mr. Maffei, With this letter we want to express our concern.” So begins a letter that twelve members of the US Congress have sent to Greg Maffei as the boss of Formula 1 owner Liberty Media. And the politicians are concerned with one question in particular: why Formula One Management (FOM) is rejecting Andretti’s application, even though the FIA agrees.
“It seems as if the rejection was driven by the current Formula 1 teams from Europe,” the congress letter states. “Many of these teams belong to foreign car manufacturers that are in direct competition with US car companies such as General Motors (GM).”
“The participation of all Formula One teams – and that includes U.S. teams – should be performance-based and not limited by an attempt to protect current racing teams.”
Then comes a crucial sentence: “It is unfair and wrong to try to prevent US companies from entering Formula 1, especially as this could violate US antitrust law.”
The members of Congress therefore put three questions to Liberty Media boss Maffei and immediately set a deadline: By May 3, 2024, tomorrow, the politicians expect an answer from the Formula 1 owners.
Reason: “We are continuing to monitor this matter […] and will ensure that any breaches of US competition law are swiftly investigated and followed up. “
The three questions for Liberty Media
The three questions follow, starting with the statement that the current Concorde Agreement between the FIA, FOM and the teams provides for “up to twelve racing teams” in Formula 1. In turn, Article 8.6 of the Sporting Regulations for the 2024 season refers to “a maximum of 26 cars”, i.e. up to 13 teams.
For the US Congress politicians, this contrasts with Formula 1’s negative stance: “What authorizes the FOM to reject Andretti Global’s application? What is the justification for the rejection? Particularly in view of the fact that Andretti and its partner GM would potentially be the first team to be under US ownership and [whose race cars] are built in America.”
In the second question, the authors of the letter refer to the “Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890”, which prohibits “unreasonable restraints of competition” in order to enable “the best possible outcome for U.S. customers”, as the letter to Maffei explains.
This is followed by the specific question: “How does the rejection of the two US companies Andretti Global and GM fit in with the Sherman Act? Because the decision favors European teams and their associated car manufacturers from abroad. “
In the third question, the congressional politicians address GM’s plan to relaunch its Cadillac brand in Europe. “This would support thousands of well-paying U.S. jobs, especially through the global audience of Formula 1 and the spotlight effect [of Formula 1] on teams and sponsors.”
Then it gets specific: “What role did GM and Andretti’s competitive entry and [related] share of the motorsports market, as well as GM’s entry into the European market and [related] market share, play in rejecting Team Andretti Global, where existing Formula One teams have publicly positioned themselves against a new U.S. rival? “
What Andretti has to do with the letter
Andretti himself may have inspired the letter to Liberty Media boss Maffei: Former Formula 1 world champion Mario Andretti met with politician John James at the beginning of the week, who is named as one of the twelve co-authors on the letter. One of the topics of the discussions is said to have been a possible violation of US antitrust law, as is also addressed in the letter.
FIA agrees, Formula 1 rejects
Until now, neither Liberty Media nor Formula 1 have responded to the congress letter.
In October 2023, the world governing body granted Andretti Formula 1 approval. The Formula 1 management in turn declined three months later. The reason given at the time: “Our analysis has shown that an eleventh team in itself brings no [additional] value to the championship. A new team could generate value primarily through competitiveness. However, we do not believe that the applicant can be competitive. “
What the US Congress actually does
In the US political system, Congress is responsible for legislation. It is made up of 100 senators in the Senate and 435 representatives in the House of Representatives.
The Democratic Party of US President Joe Biden currently holds the majority of seats in the Senate, while the Republican Party holds the majority in the House of Representatives. Biden himself was active in the Senate from 1973 to 2009 as a senator from the US state of Delaware.
