2025 Champion Lando Norris to Pay Over €1M for 2026 Superlicense
2025 F1 champion Lando Norris will pay a record-tying superlicense fee of over €1 million for the 2026 season, a cost calculated based on his 423-point championship victory and a standard rate per point.
Lando Norris's 2025 Formula 1 championship victory comes with a hefty price tag: a €1,023,658 superlicense fee for the 2026 season. This cost is directly tied to his dominant 423-point haul, with the FIA's fee structure charging drivers for each point scored. While teams typically cover this expense, it highlights the significant financial scale of competing at the sport's pinnacle, where success directly translates to a higher cost of entry.
Why it matters:
The superlicense fee system directly links on-track success to operational costs, turning championship points into a major financial line item. While teams like McLaren almost always cover these costs for their drivers, the multi-million-euro fees for top contenders underscore the immense financial machinery behind Formula 1. It's a mechanism where the sport's governing body effectively monetizes the performance of the grid's elite drivers, making a title win both a sporting and a financial achievement.
The details:
- Norris's Bill: The 2025 champion's fee is calculated as a €11,842 base rate plus €2,392 for each of his 423 championship points, totaling €1,023,658.
- Top Tier Costs: His rivals are not far behind. Four-time champion Max Verstappen (421 points) will pay €1,018,874, while Norris's McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri (410 points) faces a bill just under the million-euro mark at €992,562.
- The Base Rate: At the other end of the spectrum, drivers who scored no points in 2025, like Franco Colapinto, or did not compete, such as Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez, only owe the flat €11,842 fee.
- The Record: Verstappen still holds the all-time record, paying a staggering €1,217,900 for his 2024 license after his record-breaking 575-point 2023 season.
Looking Ahead:
As F1's commercial and sporting success continues to grow, these superlicense fees are likely to remain a significant, albeit predictable, expense for the sport's top teams. The system reinforces the financial chasm between the championship contenders and the rest of the grid, where performance on track directly correlates to the administrative cost of competing the following year. For Norris and McLaren, it's simply the price of being champions heading into 2026.