Formula 1 benefits from a contribution from volunteer officials that is worth around $15.5million per year, a new report has revealed.

The FIA has just published a landmark research document that, for the first time, delves into the scale and importance of its volunteers that help in the running of F1 weekends.

Analysing the involvement of unpaid officials - from flag marshals and observers to extrication teams and medical personnel - the work conducted by the FIA University has shone a light on the scale of structure in place.

It has found that it takes an average of 838 volunteers to help organise and run each round of the F1 world championship, which means more 20,000 individuals need to be called upon over the course of a season.

The costs for FIA member clubs associated with recruiting, training and delivering this army of assistance is $12.9m.

But more interestingly, the research has shown that, if an industry standard replacement labour cost was calculated to hire people professionally rather than use volunteers, it would cost at least an extra $15.5m over the course of a year.

The size of the logistical operations, and the increased workload being placed on individuals who often have to take unpaid annual leave to help work on race weekends, has prompted the FIA to be more mindful about future-proofing its operations.

The report said: "These findings make clear that the continued excellence of the F1 world championship depends on moving from an ad-hoc reliance on volunteer goodwill toward a more systematic and professional model of volunteer management."

Looking to the future

The report lays out some key recommendations to be acted upon, which include the need to centralise training, research and evaluation as well as have an expanded race operations centre.

It added that: “The FIA would benefit from a dedicated officials department with a series of full-time roles to support the work of the unit.”

The FIA is already investing around $400,000 per year in its high performance programme to help train up future officials, and funding is set to increase in the future.

Furthermore, it has been suggested that the governing body continues to advance plans for a dedicated officials training centre, to be called the centre of excellence.

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem said the report simply confirmed how valuable the contribution from volunteers was to the running of F1.

"The FIA Formula 1 world championship relies on volunteers," he said. "They are the backbone of our sport - without them we simply could not go racing.

"They ensure our competitions are safe and fair. They act with professionalism and pride, and they support drivers, teams and fans.

"The FIA deeply values their contribution and this landmark report not only delivers vital insights into their role but recognises our significant investment and helps the FIA continue to provide support in the most effective ways."