管理層發言
Thank you, Kevin. Thanks, everyone, for joining us today on Liberty Media's Fourth Quarter and Year-end 2025 Earnings Call. This call today includes certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Actual events or results could differ materially due to a number of risks and uncertainties, including those mentioned in the most recent Form 10-K followed by Liberty Media with the SEC. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this call and Liberty Media expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. On today's call, we will discuss certain non-GAAP financial measures for Liberty Media, including adjusted OIBDA, constant currency for MotoGP, the required definitions and reconciliations for Liberty Media can be found on Schedule 1 and MotoGP or Schedule 2 at the end of the earnings press release issued today, which is available on Liberty Media's IR website.
Speaking on today's call, we have Liberty Media's President and CEO, Derek Chang; Liberty's Chief Accounting and Principal Financial Officer, Brian Wendling; Formula One's President and CEO, Stefano Domenicali; MotoGP CEO, Carmelo Ezpeleta and other members of management will be available for Q&A. With that, I'll hand the call over to Derek.
Morning. Thank you, Hooper. And before I start, I just want to welcome Hooper to our team. This is his first earnings call for Liberty. Many of you know, Hooper already; he has obviously been part of and around the Liberty Complex, but we are very, very happy to have him with us here. It has been an exceptionally productive and successful year for Liberty. We are energized by the strong progress we've built across our businesses and are focused on accelerating our momentum this year. We have delivered against each of the priorities we articulated last year, namely one to continue F1's growth trajectory; two, to augment our portfolio with the acquisition of MotoGP; and three, to execute the Liberty Live split-off. Following the split-off last December, we are now a premier global sports investment vehicle anchored by 2 world-class motorsport leagues and operating in an industry supported by strong secular growth tailwinds.
Looking ahead to this year, operational excellence at MotoGP and F1, while remaining disciplined and opportunistic with our capital to drive value for our shareholders and across our portfolio. Turning now to our operating businesses. At MotoGP, we see tremendous upside over time and are in the early stages of unlocking that potential. We don't expect to see these investments bear fruit immediately, but are laying the necessary groundwork to drive this sport forward. Since closing the acquisition last July, we've continued building on our commercial functions. We hired key personnel across sales, public relations, social media strategy with more additions to come. We're focused on driving knowledge sharing between MotoGP and F1 and believe this can support long-term value over time. I just recently returned from our Partner Summit in Barcelona, where we clearly articulated our strategy to teams, promoters, and partners across the ecosystem.
The enthusiastic response was a very positive sign as we build share momentum with a strong collective commitment to the future of our sport. For Moto, our 3 key priorities are: first, we remain focused on strengthening MotoGP's foundation and expanding its global footprint. We recently announced we are moving our Australia race to Adelaide, marking our first modern era circuit in a city center and we are excited to return to Brazil this year after a 20-year hiatus and look forward to adding Buenos Aires to the calendar next year, strengthening our presence in major international cities. Second, we remain focused on elevating the Grand Prix experience into a must-attend event at every circuit. We continue to further enhance our hospitality offerings and improve the on-site fan experience. Finally, this work underpins our efforts to unlock our brand value to scale the sponsorship roster. We remain disciplined in our approach to sponsorship and are prioritizing brand alignment with high-quality partners over near-term wins.
Now turning to F1. F1 once again delivered an exceptional year with the sport firing on all cylinders across growth, engagement, and commercial momentum. We renewed with multiple long-term existing partners; we signed several new marketing partners, including Standard Chartered, our official wealth management and banking sponsor. As you saw earlier this morning, we just announced our broadcast extension with beIN in the Pan Asia region. And earlier this week, we announced the extension of our ESPN partnership in Latin America. Our third year of the Las Vegas Grand Prix was a resounding success and our relationship with the Las Vegas community has never been stronger. Importantly, we finalized the new Concorde Agreement to cover the 5 years from 2026, which provides us with durable financial economics in all F1 constituencies and constituents a stable base to invest into the sport and drive long-term value creation and an even healthier ecosystem.
And 2026 should be an exciting season on track with Cadillac and Audi joining the grid. The new brands, cars, and engines should lead to an incredibly competitive racing season ahead. Stefano and Carmelo will both provide more updates on their businesses later in the call. We look forward to continuing to support their strategic vision. Now I'll turn it over to Brian for more on Liberty's financial results.
Thank you, Derek, and good morning, everyone. At year-end, Liberty Media had cash and liquid investments of $1.1 billion, which includes $539 million of cash at F1 and $197 million of cash at MotoGP. Total Liberty Media principal amount of debt was $5 billion at year-end, which includes $3.4 billion of debt at F1, and $1.2 billion of debt at MotoGP, leaving $499 million at the corporate level. F1's $500 million revolver and MotoGP's EUR 100 million revolver are both undrawn. At year-end, F1 OpCo net leverage was 2.8x. This is down from 3.3 that we gave at June 30 pro forma for the MotoGP acquisition. And MotoGP's net leverage was 4.7x at year-end, down from 5.6x at September 30. We expect to continue delevering at MotoGP this year. Liberty Media's overall net leverage was 3.6x. Turning to the F1 business. I'll make some brief comments about the fourth quarter but focus on full-year comparisons primarily.
A reminder that every quarter in 2025 had incomparable race count and mix. 2026 will also have incomparable race count and mix except for the fourth quarter. The majority of the variability in Q4 year-over-year results is due to one more race being held in the fourth quarter compared to the prior year period. Q4 2025 had 7 races compared to 6 races in Q4 2024, with Singapore being included in the current year period but not the prior year period. Note that we operated the same number of Paddock Clubs during the fourth quarter, given that the Singapore Paddock Club is operated by the local promoter. For the full year, the business performed exceptionally well. Revenue grew 14% and adjusted OIBDA grew 20%, driven by growth across all revenue streams. Sponsorship revenue continues to increase from new partners and underlying growth in contractual increases. Media Rights revenue grew due to underlying growth in contracts, continued growth in F1 TV, and the one-time benefit of the F1 movie revenue that was recognized in the second quarter.
Race promotion revenue increased due to underlying growth in contracts. Other revenue grew primarily driven by higher hospitality and growth in licensing and freight income. Higher hospitality revenue includes revenue from the Las Vegas Grand Prix, and also revenue generated at Grand Prix Plaza from its growing private events business and the various new activations we opened in May of last year. Touching briefly on the Las Vegas Grand Prix. As Derek mentioned, our third year operating the race was a success, and we saw improved financial performance year-over-year. We continue to see a material benefit accruing from LVGP to the broader F1 ecosystem across various revenue streams, especially sponsorship, hospitality, and licensing. Vegas continues to serve as a very successful test bed for product expansion and is integral to the continued growth of our sport in the U.S. Adjusted OIBDA increased during the year, driven by the strong revenue growth discussed above, outpacing increased operating and SG&A expenses.
Higher operating expenses included higher team payments, and increased expenses associated with servicing our revenue streams. The increase in SG&A was due to higher personnel and marketing costs. Team payments as a percent of pre-team share adjusted OIBDA were 59.7% for the full year 2025, representing 185 basis points of leverage against 2024. Over the past 4 years, we've seen an average of roughly 200 basis points improvement in leverage each year, and we expect 2026 to be approximately in line with this average. After 2026, for the remainder of the term of the new Concorde Agreement out to 2030, we expect the payout percentage to remain relatively stable. A reminder that team payments are best analyzed on a full-year basis due to quarterly fluctuations in team payments as a percent of adjusted OIBDA. Looking quickly at MotoGP's results. As a reminder here, we closed the MotoGP acquisition on July 3.
Our financial results are presented on a pro forma basis as though the transaction occurred on January 1, 2024, and the trending schedule will be posted to our website after the 10-K is filed, including results in U.S. GAAP for the full year 2024 on a pro forma basis. The majority of MotoGP's revenue costs are euro-denominated and as such, are subject to translational impacts from foreign exchange fluctuations. In the following discussion, I'll focus primarily on constant currency results. Similar to F1, I'll make a few comments about the fourth quarter, but we'll primarily focus on the full year. Year-over-year comparisons are impacted by the mix of races, and generally, MotoGP flyaway races carry higher costs, which includes freight, travel, and higher earth fees. MotoGP held 5 races in the fourth quarter of both this year and the prior year. Revenue increased at MotoGP during the fourth quarter as increased race promotion fees due to the race mix and contractual uplifts were offset primarily by lower proportionate recognition of season-based income, with revenue from 5 out of 22 races being recognized this year versus by about 20 races recognized last year.
For the full year, MotoGP had 22 races compared to 20 in 2024. Revenue grew across all primary revenue streams, primarily due to the 2 additional races held and contractual fee increases. Media Rights revenue also increased due to growth in VideoPass subscription revenue, and other revenue benefited from increased hospitality revenue, which saw 2 additional races and increased attendance, partially offset by a decrease in fees related to MotoE. Adjusted OIBDA grew for the year driven by the higher revenue, offset by growth in operating expenses. SG&A expenses were lower, primarily driven by recognizing less bad debt expense in 2025 compared to the prior year. Note that bad debt expense in 2024 was primarily related to race cancellations from years prior to 2024. Looking briefly at Corporate and Other results for the year, revenue was $414 million. This includes Quint results up until the split-off on December 15 and approximately $33 million of rental income related to Grand Prix Plaza.
Corporate and other adjusted OIBDA was $5 million and includes Quint results up until split-off, Grand Prix Plaza rental income, and corporate expenses. As a reminder, Quint business is seasonal, with the largest and most profitable events taking place in Q2 and Q4. Note that Quint intergroup revenue from MotoGP is eliminated in our consolidated results through the spin date. Going forward, Quint will no longer be reported in our operating results. F1 and MotoGP are in compliance with their debt covenants at quarter end. And with that, I will turn the call over to Stefano to discuss Formula One.
Thanks, Brian. 2025 was a thrilling season as we celebrated the 75th anniversary of Formula One with standout performances across the grid. Nine drivers across seven different teams reached the podium, including phenomenal performance from rookies like Isack Hadjar. Congratulations to Lando Norris for winning the Driver Championship and McLaren for winning the Constructors' Championship. 2026 is set up to be another captivating season as it represents the next generation in F1 incredible history with new cars, engine, and regulations. All signs point to an exciting kickoff in Melbourne next week, which we know will sell out after intensive precision testing in Spain and Bahrain. We look forward to welcoming Cadillac and Audi to the grid and for the return of Ford with Red Bull and Honda with Aston Martin. In December, we also successfully completed the signing of various elements of the new Concorde Agreement with all teams and the FIA.
Engagement across our fan base continues to grow. We welcomed 6.75 million attendances last season, our largest combined attendance in history, up 4% relative to 2024. Australia, Silverstone, Mexico, and Austin, each, respectively, welcomed over 400,000 fans over race weekends, and we had 19 events sell out with 11 setting new attendance records. The Paddock Club served 65,000 race day guests, up 10% on the prior year. Last season, many of our Paddock Clubs sold out, and we increased revenue 20% per race on average. Robust demand continues for 2026 with record preseason sales, and in partnership with our promoters, we are increasing capacity at certain races while looking to keep enhancing our guest experience. For example, at our Austin Grand Prix, the promoter is currently constructing a new facility at Turn 1, which will host a new Paddock Club space to accommodate more guests. Our promoters also have plans to upgrade the Paddock Club space in Mexico and introduce a new Gordon Ramsay experience in the Paddock in Shanghai, just to name a few developments.
We continue to see strong engagement and reach across viewership and our digital and social platforms. Cumulative viewership is up across our broadcast and digital platforms. Global Live TV viewership across all sessions was up 21% year-over-year, showing increased appeal for our core product. F1 race weekends continue to broaden, with practice sessions showing strong increases in viewership. Screen popularity continues to increase with Sprint session viewership up to 10% year-over-year, and qualifying delivered the largest growth across all sessions with audiences up 23% year-over-year. For the Sprint races, we are currently in active discussions to expand the Sprint format up to 12 races in 2027 due to the high demand from promoters and fans. The Sprint format has also demonstrated impressive performance across fan engagement. Our YouTube content generated 1.65 billion views, up 48% relative to 2024 and with YouTube highlights views increasing 21% year-over-year.
Passenger Princess reached 7.6 million total views, including 1.5 million views within the first week of release, highlights from the first three days of the preseason test in Bahrain reached over 8 million views on YouTube, which represents an increase of 64% compared with the Bahrain preseason testing session in 2025. And highlights from our first-ever Barcelona shakedown reached nearly 17 million views on YouTube. We hope you will be tuning in for season 8 of Drive to Survive. For the fifth consecutive year, F1 continues to be the fastest-growing sport on social media. We ended the year with 150 million social media followers, up nearly 20% year-over-year. Commercially, we had another strong year of renewals and new partnerships. We have an active year of media rights negotiations, signing or renewing with broadcast partners across multiple territories, including the United States, Pan-Asia, Canada, Brazil, Latin America, Mexico, New Zealand, Japan, and India.
Apple is now our U.S. Media rights partner, and we are excited by their vision, innovation, and unmatched ability to reach and engage wider audiences through their platform and marketing scale. This was clearly demonstrated by the success of the full-time Oscar-nominated F1 movie last summer. Apple will be a key driver of our U.S. growth strategy, and we are excited to work with them to drive our next phase of growth in the years ahead. We see major brand alignment between Apple and F1 as this partnership brings together two global brands with a shared passion for innovation, excellence, and entertainment. We also renewed our extended contracts with 9 of our race promoters, including most recently with our promoter in Barcelona. The race will now be officially called the F1 Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, and we rotate with our Belgium race year-by-year throughout 2032. We will host a Grand Prix in 2028, 2030, and 2032, in addition to the race scheduled for this year.
We are also excited to welcome back Portugal to the calendar under a 2-year deal starting in 2027. The third year of the Las Vegas Grand Prix was an outstanding success. Congratulations to the Vegas leadership team for delivering an exceptional race weekend that showcased the very best of Formula One. We sold out the weekend and welcomed over 300,000 fans to Las Vegas while setting up numerous new event sponsors. Content related to our race generated 1.8 billion impressions over the weekend, and we are gearing up for another phenomenal race this year. Picking up on sponsorship, we closed out another strong year of growth and continue rising the momentum into 2026, having built out a good pipeline of discussions. We recently signed Standard Chartered as our official banking and wealth management partner in a new multiyear deal. Equally impressive is growth across our other revenue streams, including licensing and hospitality.
Our legal partnership delivered great results in its first full year, generating over 27.5 billion impressions across marketing activation. Pottery Barn Kids and Pottery Barn Teen continued sales momentum following the launch late last year. Our collaboration with KitKat is also thriving with the new F1 KitKat bars available in stores, driving enhanced retail visibility, and we are excited to roll out a new dimension of our partnership with Disney later this year. Following the successful launch of House44, our premium Paddock Club hospitality partnership with Lewis Hamilton and Soho House, it will expand from 5 to 9 races this year. Visitors to Grand Prix Plaza enjoyed 90,000 track rides at F1 drive last year, and we are excited to reopen Grand Prix Plaza to the public at the end of January. We are also encouraged by the growth of the F1 exhibition, which has sold 1.3 million tickets across all its exhibition and F1 Arcade, which recently opened in Atlanta and has 3 more new locations planned to open later this year.
Trackside retail sales grew over 30% last year, and the F1 hub pop-up merchandise experience operating in Austin, Miami, and Las Vegas. This hub saw strong foot traffic and retail sales, and it is planned to open hubs in more locations this year, monetizing untapped merchandising opportunities in key locations. 2026 brings continued focus on inspiring the next generation of F1 fans through our creative activation, partnerships, and collections appealing to all audiences across our fan bases. We are seeing incredible momentum across all phases of our business. Our sport has delivered exceptional growth, and we see significant upside ahead. The strategy work we are doing now will deliver lasting benefit to our partners, shareholders, and our fans. In only a few years, we have achieved so much as a sport and as a business. But we have only begun to scratch the surface of what is possible and the potential for F1 cannot be underestimated as we enter another exciting new chapter in our history. Avanti tutta, full speed ahead. And now I will turn the call to Carmelo to discuss MotoGP.
Good morning, and thank you, Stefano. Liberty Media's commitment and support of our strategic vision has been a strong ride out of the gate. We are encouraged by the collaborative approach and early progress we are seeing, and we are working together to build a strong foundation to drive our sport forward. The 2025 season delivered the very best of our sport through racing and dramatic storylines. We saw a standout performance across the grid with 13 riders on the podium across 10 teams. Congratulations to Marc Marquez on an extraordinary comeback and winning his seventh MotoGP World Championship. We welcomed a record 3.6 million attendees last season, up 21% year-over-year and set attendance records at 9 different circuits. First-time attendees, representing 27% of our total attendance for the season, up from 18% in 2024. The 2026 season is gearing up to be another thrilling season. We held our second-season launch event in Kuala Lumpur with global attendance and video viewership year-over-year.
Fans enjoyed musical acts by global artists, including The Script, DJ PAWSA, and DOLLA. The 2-day event culminated in a live launch show featuring show runs from teams and riders. We look forward to kicking off the season in Thailand this weekend. Our global fan base now measures 632 million fans, up 12% from last year, and we continue to strengthen our brand. We recently launched our first event season marketing campaign. Why that's different? Which brings our evolved brand positioning to life and creates brand consistency and amplification across all fan channels and touchpoints. We continue to invest in our fan insight platform to track brand awareness and engagement. This will support the long-term scaling of our commercial functions and enable more targeted and localized content initiatives. We added over 3 million social media followers in 2025 and ended the year with nearly 61 million followers across our own platform, including 4.5 million followers on TikTok; social engagement increased by 61%, and video views across our digital platform, excluding VideoPass, increased by 20%.
Fans consumed 1 million minutes on our YouTube content last season. Average household tuning into our broadcast grew 9% year-over-year. Satellite sprint races ratios continued to close the gap to Sunday's race coverage with average audience viewership growing over 26% year-over-year for the Sprint. Subscribers to VideoPass, our direct-to-consumer video service, grew 5% from 2024. We recently extended our Sky Italia broadcast rights deal, and we have also renewed our Moto partnership through 2030. We also had an active year of promoter renewals, including the recent renewal of the Thai Grand Prix through 2031. We are excited to return to Brazil this year after 20 years and welcome Brazilian MotoGP rookie, Diogo Moreira. Initial capacity in Brazil has already sold out, underscoring strong demand, alongside coverage from ESPN 41, which will be the free-to-air broadcaster of the Brazilian Grand Prix Estrella Galicia 0,0 as title sponsor.
Finally, last week, we announced the move of the Australian Grand Prix into Adelaide beginning 2027 under a new 6-year agreement. The landmark race will be the first MotoGP race to be held in a city center, and we are able to do so without compromising our safety standards. Adelaide is an ideal location, bringing MotoGP closer to its fans, and we are excited to put on a fantastic 3-day fan experience. We look forward to continuing to update the investor community on our progress. Now I will turn the call back over to Derek.
Thank you, Brian, Stefano, and Carmelo. We appreciate your continued interest in Liberty Media. And with that, we'll open the call up for Q&A. Operator?
分析師問答
Our first question today is coming from Stephen Laszczyk from Goldman Sachs.
Maybe 2 on margin at F1, if I could. Brian, I appreciate the commentary on team payment in 2026. It sounds like the expectation for team payment operating leverage is for it to be in and around 200 basis points in 2026. So 59.7 going to 57.7 in 2026. Just wanted to confirm that thinking and then see if there were any upside or downside factors that you think investors should be mindful of as we track performance on that throughout the year?
Yes. I'd point you to, we said that we added the word generally or primarily or approximately around the 200 basis points. So I wouldn't lock it in stone. As you know, we talked about it before, there are different things that can impact the team payment percentage depending on where the profitability is coming from. But generally speaking, we would expect to see about 200 basis points of leverage related to the team payment piece in 2026.
Great. And then maybe just beyond the team payment operating leverage point this year and thinking longer-term opportunities to grow margins at F1 over the next 3 to 5 years. What factors are still available to you to grow margins maybe outside of the team payment line item that could expand margins for the foreseeable future?
Yes. Certainly, as we grow primary revenue streams, you would expect to see some leverage around those revenues. But we continue to invest in the business. And when you look at some of our other revenue streams, they certainly have costs associated with them. We've looked at growth in other costs of F1 revenue in the past. And you can certainly see partner servicing costs there as we grow our sponsorship revenue base; there's incremental Paddock Club obligations associated with that. So there are certainly costs associated with growing those revenues. But as we grow the primary revenue streams, we would hope to see some leverage there, but we're also going to balance that with continuing to invest in the business and try new things and try to grow the overall pie.
Yes. To expand on what Brian mentioned, all the costs are linked to improving our margins. As we become more successful, we need to focus on key areas to drive our growth. This is our guiding principle. In all our revenue streams, we apply this approach. Additionally, when we make long-term deals with promoters, we have the opportunity to enhance our investments, enabling us to explore more options, such as expanding the Paddock Club. This is just one example. Ultimately, the idea is that costs are always related to the potential increase in our revenue margins.
Our next question today is coming from Kutgun Maral from Evercore ISI.
Maybe following up and expanding on the margin discussion. I had a high-level question on the durability of your EBITDA growth, which was very strong in '25 and looks positioned to be healthy again in '26. Maybe taking a step back for a second. Since Liberty took over, the growth algorithm has been fairly consistent and straightforward. You had rising popularity of the sport and brand combined with strong execution, monetizing revenue streams with a lot of untapped runway. In other words, there was comfort that regardless of the quarter or even year, there would be a lot of room to grow over the upcoming 3 to 5 years, and that vision has clearly played out. As you look out over the next 3 to 5 years now, though, how should we think about what sustains that attractive EBITDA growth profile as some areas either face tough comps or see new dynamics, whether it's lapping very strong sponsorship growth, managing the strategic balance and media rights, a race calendar that's already largely contracted, or the new team payout structure? And finally, are there any underappreciated drivers or levers you'd point to that helps support growth from here?
Stefano, why don't you take this because you've obviously got the thoughts around the growth of the business more holistically. So I think that's a good place to start.
Absolutely. Thanks, Kutgun. I mean, let me start on one thing that I take the opportunity to thank, first of all, our shareholders, our team, the FIA, the teams, and all the relevant stakeholders because we have left an incredible moment in our sport. I remember all the earnings calls since I was involved in that, every time was what's next, what's next, what's next. That's a mindset; it's not guidance. So we have always proven to invest in our future because we do believe in the growth of our sport. And we do believe that in the future, there are so many new opportunities to keep running this rhythm because this is exactly what we are doing together. And the stronger the ecosystem, the more we are able to catch new opportunities and all the driving force of our revenue streams. And that's why you see what has happened so far in the last couple of years not only in terms of turnover but also in terms of EBITDA.
And this will continue because we see, as we said, so many opportunities to keep growing. And the fact we are stabilizing in certain ways with certain promoters' deals will allow us to leverage, as I said before, other investments that will bring us other opportunities to return. We were able to explore the possibility of engaging with new categories of our partners and largely, for example, if you look at the financial services, we were able to contract with other partners because we are identifying different categories. We are opening up the opportunity of digitalization to new opportunities. We are having licensing that is just starting a great momentum with the big deals that we have just even today announced for the bigger relationship with business and so on. So there is a lot of things that we're going to bring and to keep growing the sport business at all levels. That's I definitely confirm.
That's our mindset, our approach; we wake up in the morning with these things. We are in a competitive world, not only on the track that remains our focus for sure, but that's the aim of all of us doing this job to increase the return for our investors for sure.
Yes, I believe that's correct, Stefano. It's important for everyone to recognize the strength and creativity of Stefano's team and what they've achieved in recent years in terms of revenue streams and categories that might not have been fully recognized for their potential. Looking at their accomplishments in the U.S., we wonder what other significant geographic markets remain large and potentially untapped. We are always on the lookout for those opportunities and ways to enhance the business. The core of what Stefano emphasizes is to support the sport and the engagement it fosters, which is really the fundamental basis for this effort.
Our next question today is coming from David Karnovsky from JPMorgan.
Maybe just zeroing in on the prior question, but for sponsorship, really strong results this year, though arguably, that sets up a tough comp this year. So wanted to get your view on '26 growth? And how should we think about the follow-through, not only from deals executed last year, but maybe kind of what's in the pipeline?
I can answer that, David. Stay tuned. As we've shown, we are quite creative in finding new opportunities. You'll see some deals this year that have emerged with new opportunities we can provide, offering new quality and innovative options. It's important to remember that while we have a significant quantity now, we need to concentrate on the quality of what we bring in. This is our main focus, particularly as we have a range of new projects in the pipeline. Our aim is to maintain the quality of the partners who are trusting and engaging with Formula One. This approach will allow us to navigate a competitive landscape effectively. In terms of promoters, we face a challenge of having more demand than available offerings, and the same is true on the sponsorship side. All our partners are satisfied, and our goal is to create high-quality content, experiences, and value for their investment in Formula One. This has been the case so far and will continue. The more successful we are, the more we will attract new partners from other disciplines, which is already happening as we've seen with new partners joining us.
Okay. And then maybe just following up here. The press release had called out contribution from digital advertising. I think that's the first. Can you just clarify, is that inventory on the website apps, or F1 TV? And what's the opportunity here?
Well, the opportunity is quite important because now we are not only in the world of physical advertising, we have the digitalization that will enable us to use in all the different channel possibilities to put the advertising, but we have different platforms. We have the Podcast, we have YouTube. We have other social media opportunities; we will monetize in the future even stronger.
Our next question today is coming from Bryan Kraft from Deutsche Bank.
I would like to ask about Vegas. It appears that Vegas didn't bring in significantly more revenue compared to last year, but it did result in a notable increase in EBITDA due to cost management. Is that an accurate assessment? Additionally, what do you see as the growth potential for Vegas in 2026 in terms of both revenue and profits? Are there any significant changes in your strategy for the event or ticket sales this year compared to 2025?
Stefano, do you want to just talk about Vegas broadly? And then Brian and I can you talk about some of the more specifics?
Sure. Sure, Derek. I mean, first of all, in a synthesis, or trying to set at that point, it has been an incredible strong progress in what will deliver in the short term, even a big cash flow aim in that investment. I think that the key turning point of that has been our ticketing proposition. The fact that we have also a new different way of proposing the partner, the experience and the sales to them. But the most important one that will have a factor in the next couple of years is the new dynamic that we are creating with the community. And with the new things that we will announce in due time, this will enable us to have an impact also on the P&L of this that is incredible and positive. And you will see soon that we want to make sure that this Grand Prix will keep being something incredible to be a sort of a spotlight of the year because the focus is to keep that as a unique experience. Of course, you reduce the costs associated with building up this event in a new city like Vegas. And therefore, the huge potential is definitely there. We have been very happy about the outcome of this year, and we're definitely going to be even more happy in the projects that we're going to do together in the next couple of years.
Yes. Specifically regarding the Vegas results for 2026, we experienced revenue growth. It's somewhat challenging to assess within the various categories in Vegas because not everything is reflected in race promotion. The notable growth came from increased sponsorship revenues and hospitality revenue linked to Vegas. Additionally, 2026 was a year focused on achieving greater cost savings, which we certainly accomplished. This led to significant incremental profitability, although it doesn't appear in the race promotion line; rather, it appears in other areas.
If I could just ask, I mean, it sounds like based on Stefano's comments that you do see the opportunity to continue to grow Vegas from here though. Just to make sure I'm interpreting that correctly?
Yes. Absolutely, yes. Sorry, I can't show the different numbers.
Yes, very happy and excited about it.
Next question today is coming from Peter Supino from Wolfe Research.
A question on capital allocation and your communication and then another one on media rights. So I actually start with the media rights. We were excited about your deal with Apple because we've long believed that the movement of important sports rights to streamers was a growth opportunity for the intellectual property owner. In your case, we've had investors go as far as to call your deal with Apple a disaster because of their perception that Apple means less distribution for F1 in an important growth market, the U.S. And so I wonder if you could comment on why in your prepared remarks today, you expressed so much confidence that Apple can expand awareness and engagement of F1? And then on the communications side, and I guess this ties to capital allocation, your stock in the last 6 months has become, at least from our perspective, mired in sort of a myopic discussion about team payments, margins, and operating leverage, and it's ironic because Formula One is a growth company. And so I wondered if you could talk at all about ways in which your communications might help investors appreciate the duration and magnitude of your growth opportunities going forward?
Stefano, why don't you start on Apple?
Yes. Thank you, Peter. I mean, first of all, I think that we are very, very happy about the deal with Apple for many reasons. And I think that it's important that the one that in our opinion, not so many, but anyway, we respect that, of course, they don't understand the deal, is because beyond that, there is a huge opportunity to increase the reach. There is an incredible opportunity for Apple to use all their channels, all their platforms to promote our sport in a way that has never been done before. There will be the opportunity for the younger generation to be connected with the tool that is more logical for them to use in living the sport and our business. So I do believe that this will represent a big step opportunity to increase also our revenue streams, not only in terms of direct one but also in terms of awareness in the American market that will enable us to convince also the ones that are not believing on that, that is the right move. But on that, we are not in even a single doubt. It's a great move. It's great things that will happen that will give a big boost to our performance in the American market. Our community has not even a single doubt.
Yes. And I would add on that. I mean, look, everyone understands that the landscape has been changing for many years now. And the former sort of terminology around reach and things like that are a bit antiquated. And we see from an Apple standpoint a complete 100% dedication to F1. I saw Tim Cook and Eddy Cue at the Super Bowl, and they've got the full weight of the organization behind it. And in that respect, it's not just sort of Apple TV; it's Apple Music, Apple News, the Apple Stores. So from a reach standpoint, there are many different ways that we will be able to reach and engage with our fans. I think the other thing that's interesting about Apple here, and we saw the news with the broadcasting races in IMAX theaters, right? And this sort of draws on my prior life in the pay television industry, like you wouldn't be able to do something like that necessarily with a traditional broadcaster because of a lot of restrictions that get put into traditional media deals, right?
So Apple in that sense, and I think you'll see here in the near future, other announcements along those lines that will sort of bring more life into that. But I think there is that sort of ability to create new ground here, which we will do with Apple, are committed to doing. I think the other thing that will be something to watch closely over the next 5 years is sort of what happens with the actual product. As we know, Apple is at its heart a tech company. We are a tech company. The broadcast is sort of very technical in nature, what you can actually do with that as a collective force will be interesting to watch over the next several years. I think on the second question, which was capital allocation. What we talked about at our investor conference was familiar themes, which clearly, we're in a deleveraging phase right now. Everyone understands that will sort of hit a point that we feel comfortable with respect to making additional investments.
We've been pretty clear about our discipline in this respect and our desire to invest around sort of into the actual businesses themselves in and around those businesses, certainly, and then in similar sorts of asset classes where we've got great IP, low capital intensity, and the ability for us to actually bring value, either through insights we have, relationships we have, capital structures that we have, things like that, that will continue to allow us to have ourselves be a growth vehicle.
Certainly. Our next question is coming from Joe Stauff from Susquehanna.
I wanted to ask, just following up on the number of changes in F1 this year, engine, regulatory, and how that affects certainly competition and parity. I'm sure that's naturally the goal over the long term, sort of drives interest in the sport. But just wondering the best way to think about how maybe some of this higher competition could affect the P&L in the near term, call it, 2026 versus next year? What are the near-term sort of impacts of how we think about the financial implications of that?
Stefano, why don't you talk about the changes and what you're seeing and all that sort of stuff, and then we can get into what the implications are?
Yes. First of all, let me emphasize that Formula 1 has always had the duty to be an innovative league. This innovation is crucial as it helps attract new investors. The recent regulation changes have brought new manufacturers into the sport, including Audi, Ford, Honda, and Cadillac. This is a direct financial impact, as these companies will invest in our initiatives and the overall ecosystem, creating a platform to increase brand visibility. Additionally, there is significant interest in showcasing our technology's relevance and commitment to sustainability, especially with our hybrid engines. The nature of the regulations will allow all teams to develop their cars throughout the season, leading to varied race outcomes. Initially, we may see larger gaps in performance, but those will be minimized over time. Formula 1 consistently adapts to move faster than competitors, a philosophy that will engage not only existing fans but also new ones attracted by the fresh content we are producing. We plan to enhance our merchandising efforts and work with our partner Quint to create new promotional packages. This multifaceted approach is why we have made these changes.
Yes. I mean, just to follow on that. I don't think we sat here and said we're building a kind of incremental into the '26 business plan because of these changes. But that being said, as Stefano hit on quite clearly, these changes are going to drive continued interest and engagement in the sport. And hopefully, as he says, bring in new participants, new fans, and all the sort of accrued benefit that comes with that, that ultimately results in monetization. I think the other thing in parallel here that is happening this year, as you know, there are some big names that have come into the sport between Audi and Cadillac and Ford, Honda coming back. It's pretty significant in terms of someone like Cadillac spending on a Super Bowl ad and what they're doing to promote their team on the track. So this is all part of the evolution of what F1 is, and Stefano and his team have done a fantastic job of cultivating relationships, cultivating these partnerships, building the sport into something that we do look at on a multiyear basis, not sort of how this is going to drive something in the next week or next month. And that's constantly what we're trying to do is build for the long term.
Our next question is coming from Ian Moore from Bernstein.
When we look at trailing motor results, I think everyone sees an opportunity to drive monetization, particularly sponsorship, to where F1 kind of is today. But F1 itself seems to continue to overdeliver on sponsorship. So I guess, more generally, what do you guys kind of see as the right mature mix directionally of media rights, race promo, sponsorship for these businesses? And then, I guess, for motorsport businesses more broadly?
Yes, it's early, but I believe that ending up along the same lines is probably a good outcome. Over time, we will see some developments. We've already announced new races for next year, which should lead to an increase in activity. However, the sponsorship side may lag a bit as we work on building the brand and reengaging with potential partners. I do think we can leverage what F1 has achieved, and the credibility of the Liberty name will play a significant role in what we deliver with Moto, which excites us. While it will take some time, we're confident this will happen. There is strong receptivity in the market. At a recent partner meeting in Barcelona, there was a lot of enthusiasm and positive energy. Many investors have reached out expressing their interest in the teams, indicating they see the potential. Unlike other emerging sports, Moto has a rich history to draw from, with many stories to share, as well as a well-established fan base and brand recognition. We are starting from a much stronger position, and we hope to accelerate growth over time.
Thanks, everybody, for your participation in today's call. Apologies if we didn't get to your questions, we'll look forward to speaking with more of you offline. Thank you.
Thank you. That does conclude today's teleconference webcast. You may disconnect your lines at this time, and have a wonderful day. We thank you for your participation today.