In 2025, it would be reasonably thought, to say the least, that the world of motorsport is welcoming to everyone with the passion for it, that the ideologies of the 18th century have been left behind, with an entire women’s series of racing beautifully labelled ‘F1 Academy’, a training league for future female drivers, run by Susie Wolff. Reasonably thought, but unfortunately incorrect.
Female Formula 1 fan take up 40% of the global audience of the sport, with the vast majority being between the ages of 16 and 24. The female fan sector has had an immense 40% increase since 2017. Whilst it is a controversial subject amongst Formula 1 fans, the Netflix series ‘Drive To Survive’ was a big catalyst for this, perhaps because Formula 1 had not been an accessible sport for many young people before, with average tickets to a Grand Prix weekend costing almost £500 per person, and these prices get steeper with every year that the sport gains popularity.
Whilst there have been notable advancements for young women and girls in motorsport on the track, it appears that the same cannot be said for the young women and girls admiring from afar, watching from screens, dreaming of the future. I have set out to uncover just how rife the judgement that female motorsport fans is, and just how much it has affected the audiences of the fast-paced world of Formula 1, MotoGP, Speedway and more.
I published a survey aimed at female motorsport fans to find out more and hear about their experiences, and the responses were telling.
100% of responders said that they have experienced a form of gender-based discrimination, 50% of which said that they deal with such things on a daily basis, including being told that they are only interested in the sport because of the drivers’/riders’ appearances, being questioned about their knowledge of their chosen sport, being excluded from conversations about the sport they are interested in, and even extremes of receiving inappropriate comments and messages of an unwanted nature.
But the harassment and scrutiny does not seem to stop there, after some further digging I found that many women that have attended motorsport races have received commentary about their bodies, and how they are dressed when they are simply there to support the sport that they so enjoy. One anonymous responder said, “I was catcalled at a racetrack just yesterday on three different occasions by seven men in total. There were remarks made about me wearing a skirt. That same day, a woman pointed out that I was too ‘girly’ for such a sport.”
So why is this the case? Why are more and more female motorsport fans being made to feel unwelcome in the field that they are so passionate about? I asked avid Formula 1 fan and fellow student journalist, Lola, if she felt that she would face this interrogation and judgement for being a motorsport fan if she was not a woman. “I don’t think I would, I believe I would be asked different questions about the sport if I wasn’t a woman, I always get asked who my favourite driver is, not who my favourite team is. I never get asked about the cars, or the tactics of the race. I get asked about the drama and the men.”
In order to find out just why women in motorsport face such problems of discrimination, I asked notorious Formula 1 and Fashion blog, ‘The Paddock Journal’ owned and managed by luxury brand photographer Esme Buxton how she felt about so many young women being made to feel unwelcome in the sport, being a woman in motorsport herself. “There is such a huge influx in female F1 fans, it’s apparently the largest growing sport in the female sector, so it’s been a very welcome and inclusive environment. There is definitely still some misogyny; some male fans are quick to judge any media that reports on the culture of motorsport. When asked of her own experiences, Esme said, “the most misogynistic (male fans) I’ve encountered, however, is when discussing the possibility of a female F1 driver. There is still a lot of stigma around it.”
I also asked whether she felt that enough is being done to combat sexism in motorsport. “The sport has historically been dominated be men, not only in the driver’s seat but in positions of power throughout the organisation. F1 Academy are making fantastic strides, and charities like More Than Equal are actively working to train the first female F1 champion, so shifts are happening.”
More Than Equal, as Esme mentioned, is a ‘global, high-performance motorsport programme for female racing talent’ with their own bespoke driver development programme, training young female drivers from all over the world.
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