Formula One and Tottenham FC to Create London Motorsport Venue
Tottenham Hotspur FC has signed a 15-year strategic partnership with Formula One to build an indoor electric kart track at the English Premier League club’s London venue. The deal will lead to a new racetrack underneath Tottenham Hotspur Stadium’s South Stand and is set to open this fall.
The new track will be London’s longest indoor track and the world’s first in-stadium electric karting facility for adults and juniors. The National Karting Association has accredited the venue, making the facility a potential future site for national championship races. In addition, the track site will include interactive motorsport activities and food-and-beverage facilities.
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The partnership is the latest example of the stadium’s multi-use nature. Built to replace the Tottenham’s old grounds, White Hart Lane, the stadium hosts Premier League matches, NFL games, concerts, rugby, boxing and Dare Skywalk, an outdoor attraction.
“When you take Premier League, the NFL, the F1, the rugby and you take concerts, almost 80% of the world’s population are interested in these events that happen here,” Todd Kline, chief commercial officer of Tottenham F.C. told Sportico in an interview. “And that’s the beauty of what we’re building here. How can we use our stadium to attract a more diverse audience to continue to regenerate this city?”
Tottenham is worth $3.19 billion, a 12% increase since 2021, according to Sportico’s latest Premier League valuations, making it the sixth most valuable team in the league.
With a seating capacity of 62,850, the Spurs’ home is the third-largest soccer stadium in England behind Wembley and Old Trafford. It’s one of the most technologically advanced multipurpose sports stadiums in the world, featuring a retractable pitch.
The long-term partnership with F1 also aims to create apprenticeship and career opportunities for local young people and bring greater diversity to the motorsport industry, particularly for women and underrepresented groups. It will also provide F1 with a touchpoint in London to grow its fanbase worldwide.
“For us, the partnership with Formula One and Tottenham in the karting experience itself will be the focal point of this innovative partnership,”Klein said. “But the reality is we have a huge ambition to create apprenticeship and career opportunities for all the local young people who live in the area, and in turn, the mission of this relationship is to bring greater diversity into motorsport.”
Tottenham and F1 will also collaborate on initiatives promoting environmental responsibility throughout the partnership. As a signatory of the U.N. Sports for Climate Action Framework’s “Race to Zero,” Tottenham is committed to halving its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and becoming net zero by 2040.
