ADAC issues DTM guarantee well beyond 2030: "Safer than a pension"
· Yahoo Sports
Three and a half years after taking over the DTM from Gerhard Berger, the ADAC made one thing very clear at the season opener in Spielberg: despite the ongoing criticism surrounding internal combustion engine (ICE) motorsport, the club has long-term plans for the series that extend well beyond the year 2030. "The ADAC's commitment to operating the DTM for the very long term is crucial," explains ADAC Sport President Gerd Ennser.
"Four years is not a timeframe that really interests me. We need to talk about 40 years of DTM future - and everyone stands behind that. I can say that for the entire ADAC. Nobody doubts it or believes that we will eventually ask whether the DTM makes sense. It makes extreme sense."
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Furthermore, there is a growing realization throughout the ADAC "how important the DTM is for the image and the culture within the ADAC." As Europe’s largest automobile club, the organization is not just there for roadside assistance, but "also for entertainment - and the DTM is an extremely important tool to further expand that."
"Even if difficult times come..."
The ADAC's commitment to the traditional series - which has a reputation as a survivor and has faced the brink of collapse several times since its founding 42 years ago - also applies to periods when things might not be going so well. "Even if difficult times come, the ADAC will stick with the DTM," says Ennser. "We can make this promise for the long term."
In today’s motorsport landscape, this is particularly significant, "where many others are wondering: does it even make sense to stay involved in motorsport?" the ADAC Sport President points out. At the ADAC, this is not being questioned. "It’s not just the pension that is safe, as a former Minister of Labor once said. The DTM is safer than a pension," he says with a smile.
Introduction of fully synthetic fuel as a "gamechanger"
That does not mean, however, that sustainability is not a central theme in the further development of the series. The introduction of fully synthetic fuel a year ago was a "gamechanger" and was received extremely positively by series partners and team sponsors, despite the fuel being more expensive than its predecessor.
"We aren't just talking about the DTM series sponsors; every team and every driver speaks with their own sponsors and has the same conversations we do," explains ADAC Motorsport Director Thomas Voss.
"And there is a very clear desire to do something for sustainability, to be able to justify a sponsorship within one's own company if necessary. This has been truly welcomed by all sides and makes many negotiations significantly easier."
How the ADAC intends to evolve the DTM
How does the ADAC plan to further develop the DTM, which has seen rising spectator numbers since the takeover? Aside from plans to expand the number of DTM weekends and become more international again, Voss makes it clear that there is still "room for improvement" in marketing and reaching new target groups.
DTM-Architekten des ADAC: Thomas Voss, Claudia Wagner und Gerd Ennser
DTM-Architekten des ADAC: Thomas Voss, Claudia Wagner und Gerd Ennser"This means that we also want and need to become more digital in order to get to know our customer - the fan - better, so that we can serve them even more individually with the content the sporting event offers. Many sports and commercial providers of sport and culture are currently in the process of making everything much more data-driven in the future."
For this reason, the organization has restructured, bringing in Claudia Wagner as a second Managing Director for the renamed and redefined ADAC Motorsport GmbH, which organizes the DTM as a 100-percent subsidiary of the ADAC. Wagner was previously the Managing Director of Deutsche Sport Marketing GmbH, where she was responsible for marketing the German Olympic team, among other duties.
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