A few days before the start of the new Formula 1 season, long-time F1 driver and current TV expert Ralf Schumacher sounded the alarm. The former Grand Prix winner sees Germany as a motorsport location clearly behind and calls for a rethink by politics and business.
“Politics, associations, industry, sponsors and the media all have to do a reset at some point, unfortunately a lot has gone wrong in the last few years for economic and sometimes ideological reasons or also competence issues,” said Ralf Schumacher in an interview with “dpa”. The 50-year-old warned that Formula 1 in particular needs new impulses from the German public.
Schumacher’s clear appeal is aimed primarily at the motorsport industry in general: “The automobile or motorsport-related companies in particular should come together and support sports facilities so that we have go-kart tracks again and thus become more internationally interesting again.” Promoting young talent is the key to making Germany competitive again in the long term.
The facts of the last few years are quite sobering: The last time there was a German Grand Prix was in 2020 at the Nürburgring. This took place as an alternative date and at short notice during the Corona peak phase as the Eifel GP.
Currently there is only one regular German driver in the premier class, Nico Hülkenberg. After all, Audi is joining the team as a works team, while Mercedes-Benz remains represented as a manufacturer. But that’s not enough for six-time Grand Prix winner Ralf Schumacher.
Return of Formula 1 to Germany?
Those responsible also see a great need for action at the ADAC. Its sports president Gerd Ennser admitted in an interview with “dpa” that the situation of motorsport in Germany is “currently not satisfactory” both at the broad and at the top level.
At the same time, he also pointed out the potential: there is a great affinity for motorsport among young people, and this could lead to a boom again.
According to Ennser, a return of Formula 1 to Germany requires “political awareness of the enormous national and international appeal of major sporting events – and the corresponding support.” The aim is to “bring industry and politics together to enable the return of the premier class.”
