There is a brewing war in F1 over expanding the number of teams and a radical solution might be the answer

• Several new teams want to join F1, including a new Michael Andretti-Cadillac partnership.
• The FIA seems on board, but F1 would need to approve and right now, it doesn't sound enthusiastic.

Tensions have been simmering under the surface of Formula One over the idea of expansion, and it is about to turn into an all-out war that will impact the current teams and how they share billions in revenue.

Earlier this month, the head of the F1 governing body, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem announced that it had started the process of allowing teams to apply for F1 entry.

"I have asked my FIA team to look at launching an Expressions of Interest process for prospective new teams for the FIA F1 World Championship," Ben Sulayem wrote on Twitter.

This was quickly followed up by an announcement from Michael Andretti that Andretti Global was forming a partnership with Cadillac to form an "All-American" team with hopes of joining F1, possibly as early as 2026. The team would also likely hire American and current IndyCar racer Colton Herta as one of its first drivers.

There is just one (huge) problem: Most F1 teams are opposed to expansion, and the FIA needs F1 approval to add any franchises. The organization itself did not sound as enthusiastic about the announcements.

"We all want to ensure the championship remains credible and stable and any new entrant request will be assessed on criteria to meet those objectives by all the relevant stakeholders," F1 wrote in a statement. "Any new entrant request requires the agreement of both F1 and the FIA."

During the 2022 season, several F1 team principals expressed opposition to expansion, undoubtedly worried about dividing the revenue pie 11 ways without guaranteeing the pie would get bigger. Among those against Andretti's bid was Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, one of the more powerful voices in the sport.

"Andretti is a great name, they have done exceptional things in the US, but this is sport, and this is business," Wolff said in August. "We have 10 franchises that we hope can increase the value, and you are certainly not going to increase the value by issuing new franchises to people who cannot increase the overall value of Formula One."

In a follow-up statement, Ben Sulayem referred to an "adverse reaction" to the idea of Andretti and Cadillac joining F1 and supported the idea of adding a dedicated US team to the sport [Haas is American owned, but operates out of Europe and does not have an American driver].

"The FIA has accepted the entries of smaller, successful organisations in recent years," he wrote. "We should be encouraging prospective F1 entries from global manufacturers like GM and thoroughbred racers like Andretti and others. Interest from teams in growth markets adds diversity and broadens F1's appeal."

Promotion and relegation could make everybody happy, but with a catch

In 2006, former FIA president Max Mosley floated the idea of adding promotion and relegation to F1 — a system used in European football where the worst teams each season are demoted to a second-tier series and replaced by the best teams from that league.

"It is one of the new things we are looking at, and it would be nice because it is necessary," Mosley said at the time. "Promotion, and relegation, would add a huge amount of new interest. It is natural and it would be very stimulating for everyone."

With relegation, F1 could add teams without diluting the sport and increasing competition at the same time. Mosley also believed it would bring costs down for everybody and that locking out prospective owners like Andretti/Cadillac was bad for the sport.

There is just one (huge) problem: Promotion/relegation would never work with F2 in its current form because the two series are so distinct.

The biggest difference is that F2 is designed as a testing and training series for drivers. While F1 teams pour time and resources into designing and building their own cars, all F2 teams effectively drive identical cars to keep costs down and put drivers on a level playing field.

So the downside to promotion/relegation is that F2 would have to be entirely overhauled — something that many of those teams could not afford — or a new second-tier series would need to be built from scratch.

If a new series were added, F1 and the FIA could sell franchises to 8-10 new teams without diluting the F1 grid while also forcing new teams to earn their way into the top series. They would also have to ensure the expansion fees were enough to convince the current F1 teams to give up their current guaranteed seat at the big-kids table.

That might be a big ask, but as they say, everybody has a price.

Andretti/Cadillac is not the only team looking for a spot in F1

F1's statement responding to the idea of expansion also confirmed that other teams want in.

"There is great interest in the F1 project at this time with a number of conversations continuing that are not as visible as others," F1 said.

One of those teams is Panthera Asia F1. Co-founder Benjamin Durand told PlanetF1 they are seeking entry but do not believe they are competing with Andretti for a single spot, noting that they are from two vastly different markets.

"It's not that we're fighting for one spot with Andretti or that it's going to be Andretti or us," Durand told PlanetF1. "I cannot comment on the merit of the Andretti bid. It seems that he has a lot of positive things for him and is ticking all the boxes. But him coming to F1 doesn't prevent us from coming ... We don't see each other as competitors. First of all, we are not in the same market."

Another big name looking for a way into F1 is Hong Kong billionaire Calvin Lo, who has expressed a strong desire to invest in an F1 team.

Checking the boxes

Andretti's F1 aspiration has recently checked off the two biggest boxes. First is the financial backing from Guggenheim Partners, the firm behind the ownership of MLB's Los Angeles Dodgers.

According to Owen Poindexter of Front Office Sports, Guggenheim will pay $200 million toward the construction of the Andretti Global's new Indiana home and another $200 million to cover the F1 expansion fee. Nathan Brown of the Indianapolis Star also said the firm is expected to help with the estimated $1 billion it is estimated to cost for the launch of a new team.

Partnering with Cadillac and their parent organization GM — one of the largest automakers in the world — was another big box that is now checked. Add in the Andretti family name and the US market, and the prospective team is now hard to ignore.

Not bad for a dream that looked dead in the water six months ago.