F1 of Madrid: how much does Madring cost and who pays the bill

As of today, the essential part of the processing of the contract that allows the Formula 1 Grand Prix to be held in Madrid is already closed: there is a signed agreement between Formula 1 and Ifema Madrid to host the Spanish Grand Prix between 2026 and 2035, and the necessary urban planning and mobility instruments have been approved so that the first edition (September 11‑13, 2026) can take place normally. From now on, the administrative focus shifts to the annual management of the event and the environmental and urban monitoring of the project.

1. Current status of the contract and the project

According to information published by the newspaper Demócrata, Formula 1 announced in January 2024 an agreement with Ifema Madrid that guarantees the holding of the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid for ten seasons, from 2026 to 2035. The Madring circuit, around Ifema and the expansion lands in Valdebebas, is the physical basis of that multi-year contract.

This sports-commercial contractual framework has been accompanied by administrative decisions:

• The Madrid City Council first approved a special plan to regulate the possibility of holding unique and temporary sporting events such as the Formula 1 Grand Prix in the Ifema venue and its expansion in Valdebebas, adjusting the zoning and uses of the area to make the circuit and associated activities possible (municipal note).
• Subsequently, the municipal Plenary approved the special plan that allows the holding of the Grand Prix, with the definition of the layout of about 5.4 km and 22 curves and the arrangement of the surroundings to make it compatible with the fair activity and the landscaped areas (Plenary note).
• For the inaugural edition, a specific mobility plan has also been approved, with reinforcement of public transport and traffic adjustments around Ifema‑Valdebebas (mobility plan), complemented by the Metro reinforcement approved by the Community of Madrid.

In parallel, Ifema —a consortium participated by the Community, City Council, Chamber of Commerce, and Montemadrid Foundation— has tendered and awarded the main works of the circuit to a joint venture led by Acciona and Eiffage and has closed sponsorship and hospitality agreements. According to Demócrata, the sum of investments, rights, and promotion associated with the decade-long contract is around 481.5 million euros, of which 277 million correspond to championship rights over ten years.

2. Next administrative steps for future editions

Since the Madrid–Formula 1/Ifema sports-commercial agreement is already in force until 2035, the next administrative milestones are not so much about “reprocessing” the main contract as about managing each edition and reviewing the project's impact. From the available documentation, several action blocks can be identified:

• Annual renewal of urban devices: for each Grand Prix it will be necessary to approve or update:
  • the municipal mobility plan and traffic cuts around Ifema‑Valdebebas;
  • the EMT and Metro devices (service reinforcements, specific maps, public information);
  • the security and emergency operations coordinated by the City Council and Community.
• Environmental and urban monitoring: the project's environmental documentation —according to the press— foresees monitoring after each race, with controls of noise, vegetation, and land use. From this monitoring may derive:
  • additional corrective measures (acoustic screens, adjustments to assembly and disassembly schedules, reforestation reinforcements);
  • possible modifications of the special plan or licenses if impacts greater than expected are detected.
• Contracting of works and auxiliary services: even with a ten-year framework, each edition requires new contracts and subcontracts:
  • assembly of grandstands, hospitality, and temporary structures;
  • cleaning services, private security, telecommunications, catering, etc.
  In the case of administrations and public entities (City Council, Community, Ifema as a public consortium), these awards must comply with public sector contracting regulations.
• Economic and return review: Ifema and the Community of Madrid have announced ex post evaluations to contrast the estimated economic impact (around 450 million annually and thousands of jobs) with the actual results. It is foreseeable that these evaluations will condition:
  • the intensity of institutional promotion campaigns associated with the event;
  • the possible redefinition of public contributions in promotional packages or “destination signage.”
• Parliamentary and political control: in the Assembly of Madrid, non-legislative motions and questions about the cost and implications of the project have already been debated. It is reasonable to anticipate new control initiatives on:
  • the execution of the contract and risks to public assets;
  • working and mobility conditions during the weeks of the Grand Prix.

In summary, the “Formula 1 contract in Madrid” is already formalized and deployed in its main urban and organizational aspects. The administrative work in the coming years will revolve around the recurrent management of each edition, the environmental and urban supervision of the Madring circuit, and the political and economic oversight of a project sized for at least a decade of Grand Prix races in the capital.

In the research conducted in accessible sources (mainly institutional press releases from the Madrid City Council and various press reports about IFEMA Madrid), the text of the current statutes of the Madrid Fair Institution (IFEMA Madrid / Madrid Fair Consortium) nor an official document explicitly detailing the competencies and functions of the president of its Executive Committee has been found.

This means that, with the information available in the consulted sources, it is not possible to reproduce or safely quote the list of functions “according to current regulations” (that is, with the value of a statutory or regulatory citation). The recovered texts are limited to:

• Economic and general press news mentioning José Vicente de los Mozos as president of the IFEMA Madrid Executive Committee and describing his announcements and statements about revenue strategies, projects like Formula 1, or IFEMA's fair leadership.
• Notes from the Madrid City Council recalling that IFEMA Madrid is a consortium participated by the Community of Madrid, the City Council, the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Montemadrid Foundation, and alluding to its economic impact and role as a “Madrid fair institution,” but without detailing the internal regulation of its bodies.

In the absence of that normative text, a functional approximation can be offered based on how equivalent bodies are usually configured in other Spanish public consortia and fair entities. It is important to emphasize that the following is an orientative framework, not the transcription of IFEMA's statutes:

1. Representation and direction of the body

• The president of the Executive Committee is usually the highest authority of that governing body, responsible for presiding over, convening, and ordering the Committee meetings, setting the agenda, and moderating debates.
• They usually exercise the institutional representation of the Executive Committee, and often also a significant part of the external representation of the fair institution itself before administrations, patrons, exhibiting companies, and other agents.

2. Promotion and execution of the approved strategy

• In this type of consortia, the Executive Committee is usually responsible for the ordinary management and execution of the strategy defined by a higher body (for example, a Governing Board or Consortium Plenary).
• The president, therefore, usually has a central role in driving that strategy: supervising the fair and congress plan, guiding major investment or venue expansion decisions, and ensuring that the executive management carries out the approved lines.

3. Economic and results supervision

• It is common for the Executive Committee to have among its duties the proposal or supervision of the annual budget, accounts, and main economic indicators of the entity.
• The president, consequently, assumes de facto an economic monitoring function: presenting results before the consortium's higher body, explaining figures, and defending major spending and investment decisions.

4. Relationship with public and private partners

• In a consortium participated by several administrations and entities, the president of the Executive Committee is usually a key figure in the articulation of partners' interests (Community, City Council, Chamber of Commerce, foundation, or other patrons).
• This translates into tasks of institutional coordination, negotiation of major projects (such as new fairs, large events, or infrastructures), and channeling the Committee's decisions to the rest of the consortium's bodies.

5. Limits: collegiality and subjection to statutes

• Even when the president has a very visible profile, relevant decisions usually correspond to the collegiate body (the Executive Committee itself) and, ultimately, to the Governing Board or Consortium Plenary, according to the statutes.
• Therefore, and in legal terms, their position is always defined by what the statutes and internal regulations say, which set what they can decide on their own, what must be submitted to the Committee, and what requires approval from other bodies.

In summary, with the consulted sources it is not possible to detail with legal citation value the competencies and functions of the president of IFEMA's Executive Committee “according to current regulations”. Only this orientative description can be offered, based on the usual practice of similar bodies. For a strictly normative response, it would be necessary to access directly the updated statutes of the Madrid Fair Consortium / IFEMA Madrid and, if applicable, its internal governance regulations.

For a public law consortium like IFEMA to organize a major international event such as a Formula 1 Grand Prix in Spain, it is not enough to sign a contract with the sports promoter: it must comply with a set of legal requirements related to its own capacity, the competencies of the different Administrations, sectoral licenses, and contracting with third parties. There is no “Formula 1 law,” but rather a framework of general state, regional, and local regulations that overlap.

1. Legal capacity and object of the consortium

A consortium like IFEMA is essentially governed by:

• Laws 39/2015 and 40/2015 (administrative procedure and legal regime of the public sector), in addition to its creation law and statutes.
• It must have its own legal personality and the status of an appropriate means to manage fairs, congresses, and events.
• Its social purpose/functions must cover the organization of major events and the exploitation of venues or urban spaces for that purpose. If not foreseen, statutes would need to be modified.
• Governing bodies (Governing Board, Executive Committee, etc.) must expressly approve the project, as it involves significant economic commitments and risks.

2. Competence distribution and key authorizations

A Formula 1 Grand Prix affects several Administrations:

• State: through the Higher Sports Council and basic sports and public safety regulations. It may intervene in matters of state security, interurban traffic, or international sports authorizations.
• Autonomous community: has competencies in sports, public shows, civil protection, health, environment, and often internal transport. Usually issues regulations on shows and authorization of mass events.
• City Council: grants urban planning and activity licenses, regulates public road occupation, urban mobility, schedules, noise, and emergencies within the municipality.
• Sports federations: the Royal Spanish Automobile Federation acts as the national interlocutor of FIA/FOM and issues licenses and sports homologations, coordinated with the CSD.

Usually, a framework agreement is formalized between the consortium, autonomous community, and city council that distributes responsibilities, financing, and institutional image.

3. Main licenses and administrative authorizations

Although details vary by territory, at least the following are usually required:

• Urban planning and activity licenses: temporary or permanent works on the circuit, grandstands, paddock, auxiliary structures; and activity license for the venue or the specific event.
• Public and recreational show authorization: under the regional show law, with requirements on capacity, emergency exits, self-protection plans, insurance, schedules, and admission conditions.
• Safety and civil protection authorizations: internal and external emergency plans, approval by civil protection services, firefighters, and security forces, sanitary and evacuation coordination.
• Traffic and mobility permits: street or road closures, detours, parking restrictions, special public transport devices, coordinated with local police and, if applicable, Civil Guard.
• Environmental authorizations: simplified or specific environmental assessment for noise, emissions, waste management, resource consumption, lighting, as well as mitigation plans.
• Health authorization: medical devices, ambulances, first aid posts, supply and handling of food and beverages for large human concentrations.
• Mandatory insurance: civil liability towards spectators, third parties, and participants, and, if applicable, financial guarantees required by regional regulations.

4. Contracts and agreements with private and public entities

The consortium must legally structure its relationships with:

• FOM/FIA and promoters: Grand Prix promotion contract, fee, exploitation rights (tickets, hospitality, advertising), image rights assignment, technical circuit obligations, confidentiality and termination clauses.
• Supplier companies: contracts for works, supplies, sponsorship, private security services, catering, telecommunications, grandstand assembly, etc., subject to public sector contracting regulations if the consortium is a contracting authority.
• Involved administrations: collaboration agreements for financing, infrastructure adaptation, additional public transport, or tourism promotion campaigns.

5. Basic reference regulations

Without being exhaustive, the framework usually includes:

• Sports Law and CSD regulations, along with FIA and Spanish federation regulations.
• Laws 39/2015 and 40/2015 on procedure and public sector, applicable to the consortium and administrative authorizations.
• Regional laws on public shows and recreational activities, public safety, civil protection, health, and environment.
• Local regulations on urban planning and activity licenses, noise, mobility, and public road occupation.
• Public procurement rules (when applicable) and subsidy regime if there is public aid.

In practice, the legal success of the project requires early planning, a map of permits, and a clear scheme of who assumes each obligation and risk among the consortium, the Administrations, and the sports promoters.