FIA Media Centre

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the requirement for the first races of the 2020 season to be held as ‘closed events’, there will be no race-by-race or national media accreditation. This policy will be reviewed regularly and the system will be reopened as soon as it is safe and sustainable to return to the regular capacity and functionality of the media centre.

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Message to FIA permanently accredited media

Dear all,

Following the publication of the European calendar for the start of the 2020 FIA Formula One World Championship season we have further information regarding media ahead of the first races in Austria and Hungary.

After extensive engagement with promoters, Formula 1 and most significantly national government authorities, the opening Grands Prix this season will be held as closed events. As part of this, only essential personnel from the racing teams, FIA and Formula 1 as well as those involved in the broadcast production will be allowed access to the race venues. The decision has therefore been taken not to allow the normal level of access to races for media, sponsors, guests and any other individuals not involved in the on-track and broadcast activity.

While we appreciate this will be difficult news for all the media who show dedication and passion for our sport, we hope you will understand that this a temporary situation that we must adhere to in order to allow racing to resume.

We are required by the authorities to strictly limit the number of people travelling to the event, and have been required to put a number of protocols in place which make opening the events to media in the usual way impossible at this time. These include:

• The requirement for testing of everyone ahead of travel and regularly at the events
• Implementing strict health protocols restricting interactions between individuals and groups
• Significant changes to the paddock set-up with teams operating in isolation and no hospitality and/or motorhomes
• Strict adherence to social distancing at all times

It is simply not possible to test, track and trace the travel of the normal volume of independent individuals with the required security levels to ensure the safe running of the events.

It is also important to point out that with the traditional paddock and set up at the race not being what they normally are, any usual media activity and engagement will be effectively impossible and teams have made it clear that there will be no third party access to their drivers or team personnel.

However, every member of the media undertakes a vital service for the sport and its fans around the world, and we have therefore developed detailed plans to ensure you have as much information and access to teams and drivers as possible while not being physically present.

A small, representative selection of newswire agencies and permanently accredited media will be permitted access to the media centre onsite and have been contacted directly. The group has been selected to achieve as far as possible a balance between agencies, publications and freelancers, as well as considering language and reach within the overall limitations on the number of individuals we can admit physically.

Media representatives physically attending the event will be restricted to the media centre. They will not be able to access the paddock or directly interact with drivers or team personnel.

This policy will be reviewed regularly and there will be a rotation of these individuals should events remain closed beyond the opening three races.

Similarly, a small group of photography agencies (photo wires and industry-specific) will be permitted access to the event and have been contacted directly. Agencies have been selected based on their official supply of images to Formula 1 teams, and will operate based on a content-pooling system which can only be effectively managed with this system. Again, this policy is a requirement of the event-wide protocol in place at this time, and will be reviewed regularly.

For the vast majority of media not onsite, the following measures have been taken to maximise access to content:

1. Access to data:

We will provide access to timing pages and other key data for those off-site. Further details of the platform will be communicated in due course.

2. Press Conferences:

We will continue to hold FIA press conferences on each day from Thursday to Sunday, however to facilitate the required social distancing the format will change.

All press conferences will be available to join via video link. More specific details of the format and process for press conferences will be issued as soon as possible.

3. Media content/interviews:

The FIA will provide pool audio content throughout the weekend. This will be free content that is not broadcast by any other means and is available for use by permanently accredited written media.

4. Team media briefings:

The FIA and Formula 1 will ensure every team has access to the technology and space to conduct their regular written media sessions and steps are being taken to minimise any overlap between these sessions. The details of team session will be communicated as we get closer to the race weekend.

5. Access to photography

A significantly reduced number of photographers will be permitted at the event. As with the written media, agencies have been selected to maximise event coverage whilst minimising the total number of individuals onsite.

A selection of images will be made available free of editorial rights restrictions.

While we appreciate all of you are eager to get back to reporting on Formula 1 face-to-face, we hope that the measures we are putting in place will give you as much access and information as possible. We will be reviewing the process regularly to make any required improvements.

We hope that as the season progresses, we will be able to welcome more media back to races, but these measures are currently necessary to ensure we start racing in the safest possible way.

FIA F1 Communications

For more detailed information on the accreditation procedure for the FIA Formula One World Championship please see: