How Successful Was Singapore F1?

Now I am the first to declare that I am not an F1 fan. The second to declare that is my hubby. Yet both of us ended up watching snippets of the first ever night F1 race last night which was telecasted live on TV. We couldn't help it. It was a news event and I was curious how the Singapore organizers would handle the mega-spectacle.

The day after, it was no surprise that the reporters from the nation's Straits Times declared the Singapore F1 a roaring success, and possibly the best ever Grand Prix.

But I was surprised to come across a reader's favourable comment from the on-line version of The Star of Malaysia. These unconfirmed statistics were quoted: Singapore spent SGD40million (note: other sources put it closer to SGD150million of which 60% is footed by the Singapore government) whilst Malaysia spent RM286million for initial outlay. Singapore sold more expensive tickets, had a wider TV audience because the night-timing suited Western audiences and did not have to set aside physical space for the project. Unconfirmed numbers put the profit so far to SGD 100million. Would that not be a good return on investment?

Pure speculation, the detractors commented.

It would indeed be interesting to see the true numbers but I doubt we ever will. Regardless, making money from the event is only a secondary objective of this venture.

From a marketing perspective, the event would have achieved its ultimate objective. That is, to put Singapore on the world map. That will tie in nicely with the overall tourism strategy for the country with the completion of the Marina Bay IR end-2009 and the Sentosa IR the year after.

There is obviously excellent synchronized strategic management in the Singapore civil servants - you have to give it to them. Wish I could say the same for the Malaysian counterparts. Would Azalina Othman ever be able to rise to the challenge?