W Series is heading into its sixth round of racing this year in Singapore, where Jamie Chadwick is looking set to wrap up the championship early, in a bid to win her third consecutive W Series title.
Despite this weekend being a huge milestone for the series, given that this will be their first time racing in Asia, W Series seems to be struggling financially.
In their most recent account filling with Companies House on 5th September it showed the series having a net liability of over £7.5 million to December 31st 2021. Although W Series' directors have flagged these liabilities as a concern, they have also stated, "this was in line with expectations given the business is in the start-up phase."
That being said, the series is said to owe 'significant sums' to creditors, as well as having numerous outstanding invoices worth thousands of pounds, some of which date back months.
Founder of W Series, Catherine Bond Muir, has been open with the series' financial struggles, and even admitted at the end of last year that it had been a battle to reach the end of Season 2.
Image: WSeries.com
According to the Telegraph a multi-million pound deal with an unnamed American investor recently fell through after the contracts were signed. That coupled with the ongoing global financial crisis and the depreciation of the pound sterling has been far from ideal for the series.
However, Bond Muir has voiced her confidence in the series' survival saying, "We've had to fight from day one. It has always been a struggle but we're fighters."
But could the motorsport community, specifically Formula One, be doing more to support W Series...
In May, the Premier League pledged £3 million to the Women's National League, in a bid to boost women's football and player development. Something which was said to be a 'game-changer' for women's football.
Whilst in the US, the National Basketball Association (NBA) subsidised their female counterpart, the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) during the sports early years. If W Series were to receive some sort of financial support from other motorsport series, such as Formula One, this could secure the series' survival.
However, as women's sport continues to go underfunded, the growing fear within the motorsport community is that if W Series fails to see a fourth season, how far will this set women back in motorsport.
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