How the coming year exactly will look like in terms of events is still very uncertain. One thing is sure: until July 1st there will be no major events with an audience. That also applies to the Dutch Grand Prix which for that reason will only be held in the second half of the season. But what if there is no audience then either.

Given the erratic nature of the spread of the coronavirus and the knowledge that all vaccination programs currently offer no guarantee against further spread, it may be that in the second half of 2021 no large events with public can be held.

Will the Dutch Grand Prix stick to the original plan?

The organisation of the Dutch Grand Prix has always stuck to the plan to have their race with an audience only. Should the GP be cancelled again this season for that reason, the organisation may be compensated by the government.

The NOS reports that 385 million euro will be made available to compensate organizers of major events. Concerts, festivals, sporting events and conferences all fall under that heading. That's a lot of shares, especially since Zandvoort would take a large chunk of that 385 million.

It is not certain that the Dutch Grand Prix will be eligible for this. According to Erik van Haren from The Telegraph it would be a requirement that an event has cancellation insurance for the previous two editions. The Dutch GP is of course new in that respect. It could also be that the race will take place without a public and that the FOM will help out financially like it did in Spain and Belgium last year.