Tottenham Hotspur Stadium will house the world’s first in-stadium electric karting facility as part of a new 15-year strategic partnership with Formula One. The venue is to be built under the South Stand and is expected to be the longest indoor track in London when it opens later this year.
The stadium already hosts music concerts, boxing and rugby already and the facility, which is not in use at any other European football ground, will include separate tracks for both adults and juniors. It has been accredited by the National Karting Association, making the course a potential future venue for UK championship races.
The karting experience is being hailed by the club as a long-term partnership that Tottenham and F1 hope will create apprenticeship and career opportunities for local young people and bring greater diversity to the motorsport industry, particularly for women and underrepresented groups.
In particular, the belief is that the driver academy programme at the north London venue will widen the motorsport talent pool and help to identify the next generation of F1 drivers. The club and F1 have pledged to deliver educational activities for schools, to engage local young people in motorsport and showcase career opportunities and pathways in areas such as engineering and software development.
Stefano Domenicali, Formula One CEO, said: “As we continue to grow our sport around the world, partnering with world renowned brands like Tottenham Hotspur allows us to take F1 and motorsport to new and diverse audiences.
“The karting experience will be a destination and place that families, friends and aspiring drivers from all over the world will want to visit and enjoy, engaging new audiences and offering an accessible entry point to the world of motorsport.”
Daniel Levy, Tottenham’s chairman, added: “Since building this stadium our ambition has always been to see how far we can push the boundaries in delivering world-class experiences that will attract people from around the world all year round. We have been able to bring the biggest names in sport and entertainment to London N17. We are extremely excited about what this long-term partnership with F1 will bring for our global, national and local communities.”
