F1 Chinese Grand Prix draws 220,000 spectators

The Chinese Grand Prix, a key stop in the Formula One World Championship, wrapped up in Shanghai on Sunday, with attendance reaching around 220,000 spectators, according to the event operator.

The Shanghai event marks the second race of the 24-race Formula One season. Since its debut in the Chinese metropolis in 2004, the F1 Chinese Grand Prix has become a globally recognized sporting event and a significant highlight on the city's sports calendar. As this year coincides with the 75th anniversary of F1, the event drew massive interest.

Outside the event venue, a 32,000-square-meter area was transformed into a free, one-stop automotive culture experience for the public. The venue featured car displays, interactive zones, music stages, and food stalls, offering diverse activities for fans and families alike.

In addition, the Shanghai Jiading District, where the race venue is located, also holds the Shanghai Automobile Culture Festival simultaneously, introducing themed tourism routes and promotional packages combining race tickets with hotelstays and local attractions.

"During the F1 Chinese Grand Prix this year, spending on dining, accommodation, transportation, and entertainment reached a new high. The occupancy rate of major mid-to-high-end hotels in Jiading averaged over 95 percent," said Jin Fen, Deputy Director of the Jiading District Culture and Tourism Bureau.

According to event organizers, 10 percent of the spectators were international visitors, 20 percent were locals of Shanghai, and 70 percent traveled from across China.

"I've been in China (for) two months. I was traveling around. I love it. Shanghai is amazing," said a Russian visitor.

"I come from Jingdezhen City in Jiangxi Province. I've been watching the games for three days," said a Chinese boy.

"I arrived on Friday [to] visit the city, visiting several places like Zhujiajiao, Suzhou and the center of Shanghai," said a visitor from Italy.

Yang Yibin, chairman of the F1 Chinese Grand Prix operating team, highlighted the event's broader impact.

"The three-day event attracted approximately 220,000 spectators. Shanghai has established a coordinated mechanism integrating culture, sports, commerce, tourism, and exhibitions. For major events like this one, it is important to make good use of this mechanism to promote consumption and drive economic growth," he said.

F1 Chinese Grand Prix draws 220,000 spectators

Washington's assertive moves, from attacks on Venezuela to threats against Iran and Greenland, reflect the final outburst of a declining unipolar order and may encourage countries in the Global South to band together as uncertainty grows, said American University history professor Anton Fedyashin.

U.S. President Donald Trump's policy agenda has drawn widespread criticism from governments around the world, as Latin American governments condemn the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, and the European Union sharply rejects Trump's claims on Greenland, a territory of Denmark.

In a recent interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Fedyashin said that the U.S. president's brazen actions signal an impending end to America's excessive global influence.

"I think we are entering a period of global fragmentation, and that we are certainly entering a period when American hegemony is in relative decline. And I think that Donald Trump, by the way, is a manifestation. It's the 'extinction burst' of American hegemony, of the unipolar moment," he said.

Fedyashin predicted that stronger cooperation among Global South nations will become increasingly urgent as countries seek new pathways to accelerate development amid the renewed uncertainties from the U.S.

"What I think is more likely to start happening is that countries around the world will start banding together, in order to protect themselves against the United States, and against the West and whatever other outside actors there are. The world, the members of the Global South will start looking for alternatives to Western-dominated organizations, both economically and from the point of view of security. So I think that if the United States continues to be so unpredictable and aggressive, that the Global South, at least, will start coming together," said the historian.

US aggression signals hegemony faces "extinction burst": historian