Who is Bernie Ecclestone?
He is the Chairman Emeritus of the Formula One Group. He was born in 1930, his age is 89 years. Ecclestone left school at age 16 to start an amateur career in motorcycling. He is married to Fabiana. He has 3 children.
Formula One Group
The Formula One Group is responsible for the promotion of the FIA Formula One World Championship, and the exploitation of the sport’s commercial rights.
For 40 years Bernie Ecclestone was Chief Executive of the Formula One group. And for long he was the owner of a large part of the F1 company shares.
In 1958 he performed in 2 Grand Prix races as a driver. In 1972, he bought the Brabham team. Nelson Piquet was a driver for the F1 team.
Together with Flavio Briatore he owned the English football club Queens Park Rangers. He was also the founder of Motor Racing Developments. Which designed and built racing cars for 3rd parties. In 1988 he sold MRD to Alfa Romeo.
Formula 1 Ownership
He took over the ownership of the commercial rights of Formula One from the teams in the 1990s.
In 2000 he leased the commercial rights for 110 years for $360 million. SLEC Holdings was created as the holding company of the Formula One motorsport companies in 1996. Ecclestone transferred ownership of the Formula One businesses to his (now ex-) wife, Slavica Ecclestone. In preparation for a 1997 flotation of the group.
Concorde Agreement
The Concorde Agreement is a contract between FIA, the Formula One teams, and the Formula One Administration. The Concorde Agreement defines the agreement about how the teams race, and how the money is divided up. The money includes television revenue and prize money.
In 2004 Ecclestone offered a payment of GB£260,000,000 over three years if all the teams would renew the Concorde Agreement.
Sold for more than $2.5 billion
In 1999 Ecclestone sold 12.5 of his shares for GBP 234 Million. In 2000 he sold 37.5% of his shares for GBP 625 million. And in 2000 he sold another 25% for GBP 600 million. And in 2005 he sold his remaining 25% to CVC Partners.
The F1 company is now owned by Liberty Media. In 2017 Ecclestone was replaced by Chase Carey as CEO of the Formula One Group. But he was appointed as chairman emeritus. And as an adviser to the board.
Silverstone Circuit
In 2018 he tried to purchase the British Grand Prix. He was told it was not for sale. The British Grand Prix is a race in the calendar of the FIA Formula One World Championship. It is currently held at the Silverstone Circuit. Silverstone is owned by the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC).
2019 will be the 70th and final year the British Grand Prix takes place at Silverstone. As the contract has not been renewed yet.
Bernie Ecclestone Net Worth
His net worth is estimated at US$ 3.1 billion.
Car Collection
He has an amazing car collection. The collection includes a Ferrari F12 with private license plates F12 BCE. He also owns many historic racing cars.