Lego enters into Formula 1, adding sponsorship of Formula 1 Academy team

Lego is rebuilding how consumers interact with motorsports, brick by brick.

In 2025, Lego launched a partnership with Formula 1 that brought officially licensed sets to global retail shelves and immersive racing experiences around the world. In nearly a year since launch, the collaboration has boosted fan engagement for both brands, led to promotional sales of Lego products and expanded the toy company’s demographic and racing organization.

In August, Lego CEO Nils Christiansen described the company’s Formula 1 sets as one of the innovations that powered record revenue and operating profits in the first half. The privately owned company announced a 12% increase in revenue year-on-year to 34.6 billion Danish kroner, or $5.4 billion, for the first six months of 2025.

“It’s a hugely growing fan base,” Julia Goldin, Lego’s chief product and marketing officer, told CNBC. “It’s the biggest motorsport right now in terms of fan base…we felt like we could really tap into that and offer something very unique.”

With Formula 1, Lego is not only tapping into its existing fanbase, but expanding it, bringing underserved demographics into the world of racing and engaging new customers.

“Lego has a great reputation for picking the right trends to become a part of, and in recent years motorsport has seen a real resurgence,” said James Zahn, editor-in-chief of The Toy Book.

“As we have seen, Formula 1 has become a huge cultural force, attracting an audience that is not the typical motorsport fan,” he said. “It seems to transcend ages and interests.”

ESPN, which broadcasts the 2025 Formula 1 season in the United States, has set viewership records for the races. the DisneyThe company-owned sports network saw an average of 1.3 million viewers across its stations and platforms during the majority of the racing calendar. That was up from the previous record of 1.21 million viewers set in 2022 and up from just 554,000 in 2018, the first year of ESPN’s broadcast deal with F1.

Next year, US broadcast rights move to apple TV following the success of Apple-distributed “F1: The Movie,” which hit theaters in June.

By expanding its product catalog – offering meticulously designed Formula 1 car brick sets, complete with team-accurate figures – Lego has built gateways into the brand for new entrants.

“Understanding our audience’s passion points was at the heart of it,” Goldin said. “When we choose to partner, can we see ourselves doing something unique that will deliver real value… We felt like we had a real opportunity to deliver experiences that they would really love.”

The F1 portfolio included products for Lego’s Duplo line for preschool children, traditional sets for casual builders and Lego Technic sets for more advanced builders.

Lego was also present at Formula 1 races during the season, hosting in-person activations that included life-sized functional Formula 1 cars, and even making brick trophies for podium finishers at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

At the Las Vegas Grand Prix in November, the top three drivers were taken to the post-race media availability area in a life-sized pink Lego Cadillac, a nod to the Cadillac F1 Team that will join the grid in 2026.

With the 2025 season over, Lego is already getting started next year.

“Lego is one of our dream partners,” said Susie Wolff, CEO of the Formula 1 Academy, an all-female racing league under the wider Formula 1 umbrella.

“When they joined Formula 1, I immediately connected with Giulia [Goldin]the [chief product and marketing officer]“Listen, can we explore doing something with the Formula 1 Academy?” Wolff told CNBC, adding: “There are a lot of synergies between what they are trying to do and our main mission.”

The Formula 1 Academy held its inaugural season in 2023. The department was created to address the shortage of female drivers in the Formula 1 series and aims to develop young female drivers and prepare them for higher levels of competition.

“We’re trying to break down preconceived notions that motorsport is a male-dominated environment,” Wolf said, noting that Lego has taken similar steps to promote inclusivity through its brick sets.

As part of the ongoing relationship between the two brands, Lego has signed on as team sponsor for the F1 Academy car starting in 2026. Sitting behind the wheel is Esme Costerman, a 20-year-old Dutch driver.

Lego’s Goldin said the F1 Academy partnership is an extension of their existing racing partnership. “They’re doing it in a unique way, because they’re actually partners to support a life-sized car and driver,” Lego’s Goldin said.

“This is a very important element to attract more attention and emphasize the credibility and authenticity of women participating in motorsport and, most importantly, for their parents to see the opportunity.” [and] “They are able to participate in the sport,” Goldin said.

The Toy Book’s Zahn described the collaboration between Lego and Formula 1, especially the F1 Academy, as a “perfect partnership”.

“[The] “Women motorsport fans have always been there, but they haven’t necessarily been embraced by consumer products.”

Both Wolff and Goldin point out that women are among the fastest-growing sectors of the Formula 1 fan base.

“We’re fully capitalizing on the trend of this fan base and adding value to the partner as well,” Goldin said. “We see from our data that not only are we engaging more Formula 1 fans with the LEGO brand, but the opposite is true. There are more fans of the LEGO brand who are now Formula 1 fans.”