American company Liberty Media has reportedly agreed to buy Formula One for $8 billion, bringing to an end a lot of speculation over the deal. An initial $4.4 billion has been paid by the company and the takeover will be completed by 2017. Chase Carey, the executive vice-president of 21st Century Fox, is the newly appointed chairman of Formula One, while Bernie Ecclestone will hold on to his position of chief executive for the next three years.

CVC Capital, who have owned the sport since 2006, will continue to be shareholders. In a statement, Liberty Media said, “The transaction price represents an enterprise value for Formula One of $8bn and an equity value of $4.4bn. After completion of the acquisition Liberty Media will own Formula One and it will be attributed to the Liberty Media Group which will be renamed the Formula One Group."

The new owners have also given the option to F1 teams for investing in the sport under the new regime, reported The Guardian. The report also added that Liberty Media would promote the sport extensively on new media and are looking to attract new audiences.