Formula 1's social media offering under Bernie Ecclestone left much to be desired, but with new owners Liberty Media taking control this season, that has changed with the sport's social media accounts ramping up engagement.
It's been reported that F1 is the fastest growing sports brand on social media, with its follower base passing the ten million mark during the first half of the 2017 season – that's an overall increase of 56 per cent compared to the end of 2016.
The sport has seen triple the growth compared to other leading sports series, such as the Champions League, MLB, Nascar, NBA and the Premier League.
F1's YouTube account now has over 580,000 subscribers, an increase of 178 per cent, whilst its Instagram has seen a 104 per cent increase in followers to just under 3m.
Video content has proven particularly popular, with video views on F1's official website up 283 per cent, meanwhile a recent video post to Facebook following qualifying for the Canadian Grand Prix, in which Lewis Hamilton was given one of Ayrton Senna's helmets for matching his pole tally, is F1's most popular video ever, with more than 7.7 million visualisations.
Frank Arthofer, F1's head of digital and new business, described the figures as "encouraging".
"One of the objectives we set ourselves at the start of the season was to broaden the audience for Formula 1 on our online platforms. We have found that in some of our most avid markets our fanbases are a bit older: so aging down the audience is and will continue to be a priority," said Arthofer.
"The figures from the first part of the championship are very encouraging. We have increased the content on offer and fan engagement has been incredible. It means we are on the right path and, at the moment, Formula 1 is the fastest growing sports brand on social media. This is the type of success that this sport deserves."
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