Formula 1 weekend: what the city says it brings in, and the COTA deals the council has approved

The Formula 1 United States Grand Prix filled Austin's hotels again this month, and the city wants residents to know what it says the race brings in. In an Oct. 26 release, Austin Economic Development pointed to tax revenue and tourism spending, while acknowledging the traffic and crowds residents absorb.

What the city says

The release cites figures from other organizations:

• Projected 2026 impact: more than $1 billion, about half from direct spending, according to Visit Austin's projection, with hotels expected to be 92% to 95% full. Final 2026 results will take time, the release says.
• 2021 race: about $331.4 million in direct spending in the Austin market, including about $154.7 million at hotels, according to a post-event review by the Texas Governor's Office.
• Airport: 45,048 departing travelers screened the Monday after the 2025 race, a one-day record at the time.
• Contract: the race at Circuit of The Americas (COTA) is extended through 2034.

The city collects sales, hotel, car rental and mixed-drink taxes from the event, and some hotel tax goes back to tourism, cultural arts and historic preservation, the release says. Austin Economic Development Director Mac Cummins said the race brings "real disruption for residents," and that "the win is not just that they came." The release does not describe what the city did to manage traffic or crowds.

What our records add

The race happens outside the central city, but the council has voted on several deals tied to COTA and to tourism.

A hotel incentive at the track. On April 23, 2026, the council approved an economic development agreement with RIDA COTA Hotel for a hotel at the circuit. Payments could reach up to 8.25% of the hotel's gross room revenue each year for up to 30 years, and would begin only after the hotel starts paying hotel tax to the city. It passed 10-0, with Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison absent.

Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, who moved the item, cited 900 jobs, soccer fields, about 12 acres of parkland and a $1.5 million contribution to the Housing Trust Fund, and said it would be paid from hotel taxes, not the general fund. Council Member Ryan Alter said it was the city's first such deal using hotel tax, and moved an amendment to authorize negotiation but not yet execution, so the final agreement would return to the council. The amendment passed unanimously among members present. Our records do not show that final agreement on an agenda yet, including the Nov. 5 draft agenda.

An earlier RIDA COTA agreement, for a hotel and convention center at the site with a $20,000 hotel tax contribution and a 10-year state rebate pass-through, passed 11-0 on March 6, 2025.

Zoning. The council approved changes to the COTA planned unit development on final readings on July 23, 2026, 10-0, with Fuentes absent.

State event money. The council has authorized the Circuit Events Local Organizing Committee to seek state event trust fund money on the city's behalf, including for GT World events from 2026 to 2030 and NASCAR events. Both passed 11-0 on consent, and the committee, not the city, puts up the required local share.

Tourism marketing. On Aug. 27, 2026, the council approved a new five-year contract with Visit Austin, the tourism bureau whose projection the release cites, up to $19,993,429 in city funds for this fiscal year. It passed 10-1 on consent, with Council Member Marc Duchen voting no.

What's next

The RIDA COTA hotel agreement is expected to come back to the council for final approval; no date is set. The city's tourism and hotel tax spending is reviewed each summer in the budget.