Formula E makes major shareholder announcement

Formula E has announced that Liberty Global will acquire Warner Bros. Discovery's shares in the all-electric championship, making it the sport's majority shareholder. 

Upon completion of acquiring the shares, Liberty Global's stake in the series will increase to 65%, making it the all-electric series' controlling shareholder. 

Liberty Global is a world leading multinational telecommunications company and has a net worth of $7.18 billion. 

The huge announcement comes just two days after Formula E revealed its record-breaking 17-race calendar for 2024/25, which sees the series return to Miami. 

“First of all I’d like to offer my thanks to Warner Bros. Discovery for the support and guidance they’ve provided Formula E over the past nine years," said Formula E CEO, Jeff Dodds. 

"Liberty Global have a proven track record of building and growing businesses and their investment in us comes at the perfect time as we plan for a period of exponential growth. 

"Having personally known and worked alongside the Liberty leadership team for over a decade, I’m thrilled to be able to further benefit from their expertise and their resources. This is a powerful vindication of the huge potential of our sport.”

A continued relationship

The transaction is expected to be completed before the end of 2024, although it is subject to regulatory approval. 

Liberty Global has headquarters in London, Amsterdam and Denver, and first invested in Formula E 10 years ago. The remaining 35% of the shares will continue to be made up by minority shareholders. 

The deal has nothing to do with Liberty Media's ownership of F1 or its upcoming ownership of MotoGP. 

“We’re excited to take a controlling interest in Formula E, a business we first invested in nearly ten years ago," said Liberty Global CEO, Mike Fries. 

"Formula E has a massive potential for further growth while integrating the most advanced sustainability standards in sports. 

"The investment continues our approach of disciplined capital rotation across our Ventures portfolio and our strategy of making long-term investments in highly attractive businesses.”