What Happened to the Cheap Dutch Grand Prix Friday?

The price of a General Admission (GA) Friday ticket has risen from $41 in 2021 to $93 in 2026, representing a 128.6% increase.^[1]
Across the six ticket categories in our comparison, prices have increased by between 61% and 129% during Zandvoort’s modern F1 run.^[1]
Inflation accounts for just a fraction of this rise, as a $41 Friday ticket from 2021 is worth about $52 in 2026 money, meaning the 2026 edition’s $93 price is still around 81% more expensive in real terms.^[2]
Back in 2023, the relative price of a Friday GA ticket was just 20.6% of a Sunday ticket, compared with 41% in 2026.^[1]
In 2026 Friday features Sprint qualifying for the first time, yet the biggest GA price jump came long before Friday had any competitive F1 action, as the price leapt 71.4% from $41 in 2023 to $70 in 2024. That year the main upgrade was a larger festival programme rather than increased Formula 1 stakes on the track.^[10]

Traditionally, a Friday General Admission ticket is the low-cost way to get a taste of a Formula 1 weekend.

For the Dutch Grand Prix, this ticket has risen from $41 in 2021 to $93 for the farewell edition in 2026. This is an increase of 128.6%^[1]

Now, at the end of the race’s revival, we should point out early on that the Dutch Grand Prix has been a success by most measures. So we’re not studying the changing ticket prices for the Friday programme as part of a move to save the race.

Instead we want to examine Zandvoort’s Super Friday Dutch Grand Prix tickets from a consumer’s point of view, assess the price increase, look at what an attendee received for their euro, and perhaps see what we can learn from Zandvoort about the present and future of F1 race weekends.

At Zandvoort the Friday entertainment has become increasingly elaborate, while a Sprint race, one of six on the F1 Championship calendar, was introduced to the schedule for the first time in 2026.^[3]

Dutch GP Friday Tickets Have More Than Doubled Since 2021

We can find sharp increases across all categories available, but especially for General Admission, the cheapest category available.

Friday Ticket Prices at Zandvoort, 2021 to 2026

*Note that in 2022 there was no separate Friday ticket available.

**2021 uses Bronze I; the original tariff also included a cheaper Bronze II tier.^[1]

The absence of data for 2022 is not much of a worry, since prices barely increased between 2021 and 2023, and not at all for a General Admission ticket.^[1]

Then there was a significant jump between 2023 and 2024. This was followed by a freeze for 2025 and then another sizable jump to this year’s Grand Prix.

And while General Admission tickets have given us the high-impact increase of 128.6%, there have been other eye-catching rises.

For example, Bronze tickets, the cheapest grandstand seating available, almost doubled in price, rising 94.9%, from $69 in 2021 to $134 in 2026, while Silver I increased from $92 to $164, a rise of 77.2%.^[1]

Friday Became More Expensive Relative to Race Day

Part of the reason why we’re isolating single-day Friday tickets is because the price didn’t simply rise with the general cost of attending Zandvoort; the dramatic increase occurred almost in a vacuum, as the price of the main raceday increased ‘only’ 39.3%.

Below you’ll see the changing price of Friday GA tickets in proportion to Sunday tickets:

2021: $41 Friday / $164 Sunday = 25.0%
2023: $41 / $199 = 20.6%
2024: $70 / $210 = 33.3%
2025: $70 / $210 = 33.3%
2026: $93 / $228 = 41.0%^[1]

Our takeaway here is that the cheapest Friday ticket once cost around a quarter of the equivalent main race day price. By the final edition in 2026, it now costs just over two-fifths.

Opening that up across all categories, we can see how the price of Friday tickets has gradually risen across the board in proportion to tickets for the main event on Sunday.

2021: roughly 25% of Sunday
2023: 22.5%
2024/25: 28.1%
2026: 34.8%

For us, this clearly illustrates that the saving for Fridays, conventionally seen as the budget day for F1 fans, is not quite what it was.

And that is despite there being a complete absence of on-track F1 stakes to attract spectators—until the arrival of Sprint qualifying on Friday at the 2026 Grand Prix.

What Did General Admission Include?

This seems like a good moment to make sure that we’re drawing a fair comparison from year to year.

In terms of intention (subject to Covid disruption), Super Friday and all of the entertainment it came with was part of the Grand Prix Weekend from day one. So things haven’t changed too much across Zandvoort’s six-year run.

What you get with a basic General Admission ticket has stayed largely the same:

You get unreserved viewing rather than a reserved grandstand seat
Designated GA viewing areas can be found in the dunes
GA tickets offer access to the Fanzone
Performances and general entertainment are included with admission
There is no premium entertainment entitlement unique to GA
As is the case across the F1 Championship, viewing spots are first-come, first-served^[5]

So, General Admission has not gradually picked up a long list of extra privileges to explain the pricing. Essentially, the ticket stayed similar throughout.^[5]

The exception is for the Covid-affected 2021 Dutch Grand Prix, which had a reduced capacity, without the normal free-ranging festival experience. This of course stops us from declaring the cheap $41 opener to be the best in terms of value.

Now, before we go year-by-year it makes sense to talk a little about the criteria we want to apply.

How We’re Judging Each Dutch Grand Prix Friday

1. What was the basic price?

We’ll take a look at the nominal price of these GA F1 tickets, and we’ve already shown the Friday price as a percentage of Sunday.

2. What was the on-track Formula 1 action?

Was the F1 Friday on-track content practice only, or was there competitive qualifying or any other sessions that directly determined a grid or awarded points.

3. What was the offering in terms of other motorsport?

So what was on the racing schedule outside of F1? This might include F2/F3 qualifying, F1 Academy, Porsche Supercup or any other meaningful supporting sessions.

4. How did the festival and entertainment lineup look

This is a rather subjective category, but we’ll delve into the calibre and profile of musical acts, assess driver appearances and assess the breadth of fanzone activities to work out exactly how full the day out was.

5. Were there any special circumstances that need mentioning?

Of course, Covid restrictions applied in 2021, there was an absence of a standalone Friday ticket in 2022, and various discounts, promotions and Fanzone experiences that might have come into play between 2023 and 2026.

Also key is the change to the schedule caused by the inclusion of the Sprint race in the weekend in 2026.

2021: $41 Ticket with a Postponement

The early years of the revival at Zandvoort were disrupted by Covid. The 2020 Dutch Grand Prix was cancelled, while in 2021 the circuit operated at two-thirds capacity.

However, fixed seating was required, ruling out the free-roaming experience that came with a General Admission ticket.

Still, it makes sense to keep hold of the price to demonstrate the intention of the organisers, and the history of the six-year run at Zandvoort.

Fans who had already purchased General Admission tickets were able to use them in 2022 or request a refund.^[4]

2022: No Standalone Friday Ticket but a Full Day of Motorsport

What happened on track?

The busy programme included F1 practice (FP1, FP2), F3 practice, F2 practice, F3 qualifying, F2 qualifying, and Porsche Supercup practice.^[6]

This may have been one of the busiest Fridays when it comes to meaningful races, despite F1 itself remaining practice only.

Who was playing?

Guus Meeuwis, who is an established Dutch stadium touring singalong star, while Antoon was on the bill during a major breakout year and Emma Heesters added mainstream younger pop appeal giving the bill a proper cross-generational market.^[7]

GA/Ticketing Note

As we have covered, 2021 General Admission Zandvoort tickets were valid for 2022.

Meanwhile, for new buyers there was no conventional standalone Friday ticket in 2022, so we can’t rank 2022 easily for value, even if we can make a few assumptions about pricing by simply looking at the 2021 and 2023 prices, which show no increase.

2023: At $41, The Height of the Cheap Super Friday?

What happened on track?

F1 FP1 and FP2 were accompanied by F2 practice and F2 qualifying, as well as the Porsche Supercup practice.^[8] Although there was still no F1 session that impacted standing there was plenty of competitive action from the support series.

What had Super Friday become?

By this point the Super Friday concept had fully taken shape, with family-friendly activities, simulators, the Pit Stop Challenge and a Ferris wheel.

There were also driver appearances and a rich Fanzone programme, and, perhaps as an upshot, Friday attendance reached 95,000.^[9]

Who was playing?

Mental Theo brought nostalgic Dutch 90s happy hardcore, while Snelle was a well-established contemporary Dutch rap act. Also in the lineup was Flemming, a fast-rising mainstream pop star at the time, while La Fuente are a household name as a party act.^[9]

Jumbo Discounts

Although the headline General Admission price remained $41, eligible customers were able to access 50% promotional pricing. Friday was being positioned as an accessible or family day out, and these discounts were part of that marketing.^[9]

Why 2023 is already our favourite for best value

So the nominal pricing held firm at $41, despite a backdrop of sharp inflation in the Netherlands during that period. For General Admission tickets, Friday was also at its cheapest relative to Sunday, at 20.6%.

And this price came with a full festival experience, competitive F2 qualifying, along with additional promotional discounts for canny buyers.^[9]

2024: At $70, The Cheap Friday Becomes a Premium Festival Day

Price Jump

Between 2023 and 2024 the price leapt from $41 to $70, which works out at a rise of more than 70%. It was the largest General Admission price movement in the entire Zandvoort run.

What happened on track?

Those practice sessions, FP1 and FP2, were joined by F1 Academy practice and Porsche Supercup practice. There was no competitive F1.

In fact you could argue that there was less meaningful Friday support action than 2022/23 because F2/F3 qualifying didn’t take place on that day.^[10]

What changed off track?

Instead the increase was probably earned with side events, as Super Friday was revamped with an opening show, F1 driver Q&As, additional interactive activities and an evening extravaganza and drone show.^[10]

Who was playing?

For an international audience, Armin van Buuren is a bona fide global electronic music star, not merely just a domestic Dutch name.

DI-RECT meanwhile are a renowned Dutch rock act with high domestic profile, playing arenas and other large venues across Benelux. This probably makes 2024 the strongest music lineup in Zandvoort’s six-year Dutch GP run.^[10]

Value Pointer

This is the year where Friday stopped being a bargain ticket and turned into something resembling a festival ticket, only with F1 practice attached.

2025: $70, A Prestiguous Super Friday Holds Its Price

What Happened on Track?

The programme was almost identical to 2024, with F1 Academy practice, FP1, Porsche practice, FP2 and a second F1 Academy session. Again, there was no competitive Formula 1.^[11]

Who Was Playing?

Kensington are up there with the Netherlands’ biggest modern rock bands and are a major arena act, while DJ Paul Elstak is a seminal figure in Dutch hardcore. Meanwhile, Gerard Joling and Mart Hoogkamer brought very Dutch singalong vibes.

We see the 2025 offering as less internationally renowned than 2024, but with major Dutch domestic appeal.^[11]

Why 2025 is meaningful for us

Mainly because the standard price stayed at $70. So whatever you think of the relative music bills, fans got another fully-fledged Super Friday without another price increase. This is also worth pointing out, given what followed in 2026.

2026: $93, Friday Finally Gets Genuine F1 Stakes

What Changed on Track?

The conventional FP1 and FP2 sessions become FP1 and Sprint qualifying, the latter determining the grid for Saturday’s Sprint. So this is the first Zandvoort Friday in which the F1 event on Friday directly affects a competitive result.^[12]

What else is included?

F1 Academy activity and Porsche Supercup are on the schedule alongside a now totally developed Fanzone, with driver appearances and opening show, and an established all-day festival format.

Who is playing?

Afrojack is an international headliner in the dance genre, while Flemming and Snelle are popular contemporary Dutch mainstream names. Kraantje Pappie is an established Dutch rap performer, and Snollebollekes are ideal for Dutch sporting crowds up for a party.^[12]

While 2026 probably has the deepest bill, 2024 probably had the highest-profile lineup.

Jumbo Discounts Return

The 50% discount via Jumbo returned with a limited time offer through several selected promotional products between 22 April and 5 May 2026.

Consumer verdict

The 2026 curtain closer is probably the best overall Friday ticket, but that doesn’t necessarily make it the best value. At $93 it costs 33.3% more than in 2025, 128.6% more than in 2021, and is equivalent to 41% of a Sunday GA ticket.

One factor that we cannot discount is fear of missing out, at what will be the final F1 event on Dutch soil for the foreseeable future.

Which Dutch GP Friday Offered the Best Value?

Year-by-Year Friday General Admission pricing adjusted for inflation

Now is a good time to see how inflation has affected our perception of the pricing during Zandvoort’s F1 era.

One of the most interesting findings from this analysis is that the sharp rise in inflation between 2021 and 2023 helps to single out the 2023 edition as excellent value for money.^[2]

Friday Compared with Sunday

For a handy measure for affordability we can compare the Friday GA price with the equivalent Sunday ticket—naturally offering the most meaningful action—in a given year.

In 2021, a Friday ticket cost 25.0% of the Sunday General Admission price.

That fell to just 20.6% in 2023, before climbing sharply to 33.3% in both 2024 and 2025 and finally 41.0% in 2026.

By this measure, 2023 is again our standout winner. A fan could get an increasingly polished Dutch GP Friday for barely one-fifth of the price of attending on race day. By 2026, Friday was approaching half the cost of Sunday.

Now, we don’t want to say that a 2026 ticket is poor value, because the offer has clearly improved.

Instead it shows us how dramatically the role of Friday at Zandvoort has changed (a trend that can be seen at other stops in the F1 Championship), from an unusually cheap way into the Dutch Grand Prix to a weightier ticket in its own right.

Comparing the sporting appeal

For most of the Dutch GP's run, Friday has offered plenty of track activity but no real meaningful F1 session.

In 2022 and 2023 for instance, qualifying for support series races brought genuine competitive stakes, but of course FP1 and FP2 themselves had no direct bearing on a race result.

That changes in a big way in 2026 as Friday finally contains competitive Formula 1, with the session determining the grid for Saturday's Sprint. On sporting value alone, 2026 has a marked advantage over every previous edition.

Comparing the entertainment

As we have mentioned, entertainment is a subjective category, you can find distinct characteristics with each edition.

The weekend in 2021 was of course compromised by Covid restrictions, making it difficult to compare fairly with what followed.

The 2022 event offered a real cross-generational bill, while 2023 arguably produced the best programme from a value perspective, mixing contemporary Dutch acts with a full Super Friday experience.

By our reckoning, 2024 had the strongest marquee music bill, most obviously through the combination of DI-RECT and international EDM superstar Armin van Buuren.

Then 2025 leaned particularly heavily into Dutch nostalgia, while 2026 is lowering the curtain with probably the deepest contemporary lineup, with Afrojack headline, supported by several major Dutch names.

So while it’s tricky to single out obvious winners for entertainment, what is probably more relevant is that the music and Fanzone programme became increasingly more sophisticated, even as the underlying GA viewing entitlement changed relatively little.

Our verdict for best value: 2023

All things considered, 2023 looks like the strongest candidate for the best-value Dutch GP Friday.

The ticket remained just $41, already significantly cheaper in real terms than the 2021 edition at an identical price. It also represented only 20.6% of the cost of a Sunday GA ticket, and that is the lowest ratio in the period that we have studied.

On top of that, fans were no longer getting the compromised or developing version of Super Friday. By 2023 the festival concept was well established, with a substantial Fanzone, family activities, driver appearances and a broad entertainment programme.

On track, F2 qualifying supplied genuine competitive action even though Formula 1 itself remained limited to practice.

Friday attendance of 95,000 that year showed that the concept had already become a major part of the weekend, while some fans could save even more money through 50% promotional discounts, even during a period of sudden inflation..^[9]

So, What Happened to the Cheap Dutch GP Friday?

Inflation doesn’t account for the price rise for Friday General Admission tickets at the Dutch Grand Prix. Instead, the offering has gradually improved, while prices initially lagged behind before catching up.

From 2021 to 2023 Friday became a noticeably better event while remaining strikingly cheap. Then the festival element of Super Friday was upgraded between 2023 and 2024, which, in retrospect, turned 2023’s $41 tickets into remarkably good value.

Since then, prices have risen substantially, noticeably in the last year to coincide with an increase in the on-track stakes for F1 fans, as Sprint qualifying is now part of the Friday schedule.

That said, Friday has now undoubtedly lost much of the price advantage that once made it the obvious bargain route into an F1 weekend at the Dutch GP.

This leads us to speculate about the future of a Formula 1 weekend.

What Could Happen to Grand Prix Fridays After Zandvoort?

The Zandvoort model, with a fully-fledged festival lineup, bears strong similarities to the British and Miami Grands Prix.^[13] Depending on climate and the culture of the host nation, the first day of F1 weekends could continue this evolution into an all-encompassing entertainment ticket off the track.

On the track, at the time of writing, the idea of introducing more Sprint weekends has been mooted for the F1 Championship. One proposal would double the current tally of 6 to 12, but F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has already stated that there will be more than six in the calendar in 2027.^[14]

At present, the scarcity of Sprint races appear to add to their appeal, which might be why any increase could be limited.

More meaningful racing coincided with a sharp increase in pricing, effectively bringing an end to Friday’s bargain status, as a low-stakes day to take in the atmosphere of an F1 weekend.

Sources and Methodology

Ticket prices in this article refer to published standard adult face value tariffs rather than resale prices or hospitality.

The 2021 figures come from the original comeback tariff, which was published for the planned 2020 return and carried forward after that event was cancelled.

General Admission could not operate normally at the reduced-capacity 2021 race, as explained in the article.

No new standalone Friday tariff was offered in 2022. For 2025, the published 2024/2025 two-year products were exactly twice the corresponding one-year 2024 prices, allowing the annual 2025 tariff to be reconstructed; the broader 2025 price matrix independently matches those values.

For category comparisons, the article normalises the changing ticket structure into General Admission, Bronze, Silver II, Silver I, Gold and Main Straight.

The 2021 Bronze figure uses Bronze I; a cheaper Bronze II category also existed in the original tariff. Percentage changes and Friday-to-Sunday ratios were calculated from those published prices.

Inflation-adjusted figures use the Netherlands Consumer Price Index (CPI) published by Statistics Netherlands (CBS). Historical prices were converted using the CPI for the month of the relevant Grand Prix—September for 2021 and August for 2023, 2024 and 2025—and expressed in July 2026 purchasing power.

CBS changed the CPI reference base from 2015=100 to 2025=100 in 2026, so the two official series were linked for the calculation.

[1] Historical ticket pricing: Grand Prix Radio’s original Dutch GP tariff, Oversteer48’s 2021–2023 ticket-price analysis, AutoRAI’s 2023 price table, AutoRAI’s 2024/2025 price table and the official Dutch GP 2026 price table.

[2] Inflation calculations: CBS Consumer Price Index, 2015=100, 1996–2025 and CBS Consumer Price Index, 2025=100. CBS also explains the change of CPI base year from 2015 to 2025.

[3] Final edition and 2026 Sprint: Formula 1’s announcement that Zandvoort will stage its final Grand Prix in 2026 and the official 2026 Dutch GP timetable.

[4] 2021 Covid ticketing: GPFans on the reduced-capacity allocation process, the withdrawal of General Admission and the option to retain affected tickets for 2022 or request a refund.

[5] General Admission and Super Friday access: TopGear Netherlands’ 2023 ticket guide, which notes that the General Admission areas were unchanged, the official Dutch GP 2026 ticket FAQs, which describe GA1/GA2 standing access and Fanzone admission, and Verstappen.com’s original Super Friday announcement.

[6] 2022 track programme: Formula 1’s official 2022 Dutch Grand Prix timetable.

[7] 2022 entertainment: the Dutch GP’s “Proud to be Dutch” 2022 retrospective and, for context on Guus Meeuwis’s domestic profile, PSV’s account of his long-running Philips Stadion concert series.

[8] 2023 track programme: Formula 1’s official 2023 Dutch Grand Prix timetable.

[9] 2023 Super Friday: the Dutch GP’s 2023 Super Friday retrospective and 95,000 attendance figure, its 2023 entertainment line-up archive and Verstappen.com’s report on the 50% Jumbo promotion.

[10] 2024 programme: Formula 1’s official 2024 Dutch Grand Prix timetable, the Dutch GP’s renewed Super Friday announcement and Armin van Buuren’s official biography.

[11] 2025 programme: Formula 1’s official 2025 Dutch Grand Prix timetable, the Dutch GP’s Kensington and 90s Party announcement and Kensington’s official site.