What Global Formula Racing E.v. does

Global Formula Racing E.V. is a German registered nonprofit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in 2009 as a student-led international collaboration between Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg-Ravensburg (DHBW) in Friedrichshafen, Germany, and Oregon State University (OSU) in Corvallis, USA. It designs, manufactures, and races Formula Student vehicles — combustion (cCar), electric (eCar), driverless (dCar), and electric/driverless (edCar) — building two vehicles per season simultaneously at each campus, separated by 9 time zones and 8,770 kilometers. The team maintains a continuous model-year product portfolio from GFR10 through GFR25, with electric variants featuring dual or quad motor configurations (typically 2x56 kW to 4x24 kW) and combustion variants producing 32-42 kW.

The organization's go-to-market is event-driven, centered on competing at Formula Student events in the USA (Formula SAE Michigan) and Europe (Hockenheim/Germany, Spielberg/Austria, Barcelona/Spain). It has earned multiple overall 1st place finishes — including four consecutive Formula Student Austria wins (through 2012), four overall 1st places at the 2014 Michigan/Germany/Austria/Spain events, and world ranking leadership in 2014 across 500+ teams. Technology differentiation centers on cross-border concurrent engineering, a unique dual-campus supply chain managed with logistics partner Panalpina, and a modular driverless vehicle architecture introduced around 2019.

GFR is funded entirely through corporate sponsorships (Diamond through Bronze tiers — Rolls-Royce Power Systems AG, Porsche, Siemens, ZF Friedrichshafen AG, Toray, Altair, DH Sutherland, EMB-Elektromaschinenbau, FVA GmbH, MS Spaichingen, GRUNWALD, Astranis, wenglor, Brembo, Ansys, Festo), in-kind contributions, university support, and tax-deductible donations. It does not sell commercial products and discloses no revenue, making it a sponsor-financed student engineering platform rather than a commercial enterprise.

Name

Global Formula Racing E.v.

Legal name

Global Formula Racing e.V.

Website

https://global-formula-racing.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Global Formula Racing e.V. is a nonprofit student racing team founded in 2009, jointly operated by DHBW Ravensburg (Germany) and Oregon State University (USA), designing and racing Formula Student combustion, electric, and driverless vehicles at international competitions worldwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Student Formula Racing Team

NAICS

Racetracks (711212)

SIC

Services-Racing, Including Track Operation (7948)

akta.pro primary industry

Motorsports Teams & Entrants (Factory & Independent) (MPAKAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Motorsports Teams (F1, NASCAR, IndyCar, Rally, MotoGP, etc.) (MPAKABAB), Motorsport Driver Training Schools & Racing Academies (MPAKAJAJ)

Keywords

• Student racing team
• Formula Student competition
• Electric race car engineering
• Driverless vehicle development
• International engineering collaboration

Headquarters

HQ city

Corvallis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Personnel

Revenue model

1. Corporate Sponsorship: Financial and in-kind support from corporate sponsors including materials, production capacity, and financial resources. Sponsors receive logo placement on cars, website, and team clothing, plus exposure at competitions.
2. Donations: Tax-deductible donations from individuals and organizations supporting the team's mission to develop future engineers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Global Formula Racing is an international student racing team that designs, manufactures, and races Formula Student vehicles in three categories — combustion (cCar), electric (eCar), and driverless (dCar). Two vehicles are built each season simultaneously at DHBW Ravensburg in Germany and Oregon State University in the USA, operating nine time zones and 8,770 kilometers apart, then competed at Formula Student events across the USA and Europe.

Product overview

Global Formula Racing is an international student racing team that designs and manufactures Formula Student race cars. The company operates as a single unified product line with multiple car variants per season: Combustion Cars (cCar) running on internal combustion engines, Electric Cars (eCar) powered by electric motors, Driverless Cars (dCar) featuring autonomous driving systems, and Electric/Driverless Cars (edCar) combining both technologies. Each season produces two vehicles (one per university campus) built simultaneously across DHBW Ravensburg in Germany and Oregon State University in the USA, spanning nine time zones. The product portfolio includes over 25 named car models from GFR10 through GFR25, with electric variants typically featuring dual or quad motor configurations ranging from 85 kW to 112 kW combined power, while combustion variants produce 32-42 kW.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Combustion Race Car (cCar) Internal-combustion Formula Student race cars designed and built annually by student engineers for static (Business Presentation, Cost Report, Design) and dynamic (Acceleration, Skid Pad, Autocross, Endurance, Efficiency) competition events. Recent combustion variants produce 38-42 kW and weigh 145-175 kg.
• Electric Race Car (eCar) Electric Formula Student race cars built annually for Formula Student Electric competitions. Variants typically feature dual or quad motor configurations with combined output from 85 kW to 112 kW, weighing 150-209 kg, achieving 2.4-3.0 second 0-100 km/h acceleration.
• Driverless Race Car (dCar) Autonomous-driving Formula Student race cars developed with modular autonomous systems for Formula Student Driverless competitions. Variants such as GFR19d and GFR20d/GFR21d use 2x52 kW or 4x24 kW motors with autonomous driving stacks at approximately 202-210 kg.
• Corporate Sponsorship Program Multi-tier corporate sponsorship program (Diamond, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze) offering brand visibility through logo placement on cars, website, and team clothing, plus exposure at international Formula Student competitions in exchange for financial and in-kind support.

Quantifiable outcome

• Multiple competition wins including 4 consecutive Formula Student Austria wins
• +1 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core, diamond, platinum, silver, bronze and gold.

• DHBW Ravensburg (Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg-Ravensburg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGerman university partner in the international collaboration. Students from DHBW Ravensburg participate in the team, contributing to design, manufacturing, and testing of Formula Student race cars.
• Oregon State University (OSU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmerican university partner hosting the US side of the international team. Students from OSU collaborate on race car development, operating 9 time zones apart from German counterparts.
• Rolls-Royce Power Systems AGcoreTechnology or IntegrationMajor sponsor providing support for the team. Rolls-Royce is one of the largest sponsors of Global Formula Racing.
• Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AGcoreTechnology or IntegrationDiamond-tier sponsor supporting the team with components and engineering expertise.
• SiemenscoreTechnology or IntegrationTechnology sponsor providing engineering software and support for design and simulation.
• ToraycoreTechnology or IntegrationMaterials sponsor providing advanced composites and materials for race car construction.
• AltairdiamondTechnology or IntegrationDiamond-tier sponsor providing simulation and engineering software.
• DH SutherlanddiamondTechnology or IntegrationDiamond-tier sponsor providing engineering components.
• EMB-Elektromaschinenbau GmbHdiamondTechnology or IntegrationDiamond-tier sponsor providing electric motor expertise and components.
• FVA GmbHdiamondTechnology or IntegrationDiamond-tier sponsor providing engineering services.
• MS SpaichingendiamondTechnology or IntegrationDiamond-tier sponsor providing manufacturing capabilities.
• GRUNWALD GmbHplatinumTechnology or IntegrationPlatinum-tier sponsor providing composite manufacturing.
• AstranisplatinumTechnology or IntegrationPlatinum-tier sponsor providing satellite technology expertise.
• wenglorplatinumTechnology or IntegrationPlatinum-tier sponsor providing sensor technology.
• ZF Friedrichshafen AGcoreTechnology or IntegrationOne of the largest sponsors providing ideal training and testing conditions, engineering expertise, and hosting ZF Race Camp training events.
• BrembosilverTechnology or IntegrationSponsor providing braking systems for the race cars.
• AnsysbronzeTechnology or IntegrationSponsor providing simulation and analysis software.
• FestogoldTechnology or IntegrationGold-tier sponsor providing automation and pneumatic components.
• PanalpinacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLogistics partner managing international shipments between Germany and USA since 2009, enabling the unique cross-border supply chain.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• KA-RaceIng (KIT): Karlsruhe Institute of Technology's Formula Student team, regularly a podium contender in Formula Student Germany and Austria. Directly comparable to GFR's German-side operations and competition calendar.
• TUfast Racing (TU Munich): Technical University of Munich's Formula Student team, regularly competing in combustion and electric classes. Comparable German student-team competitor with similar sponsor structure.
• GreenTeam (University of Stuttgart): German Formula Student Electric team with a strong record in the electric class. Closely comparable to GFR's eCar program and German university sponsorship model.
• Oxford Brookes Racing: UK-based Formula Student team with strong UK automotive sponsor relationships. Comparable peer in student-team structure and event calendar overlap in Europe.
• MIT Motorsports: Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Formula SAE team competing in combustion, electric, and driverless classes. Comparable to GFR in technical depth and US-based sponsor ecosystem.
• ETH Zurich (AMZ): Swiss student team operating electric, autonomous, and combustion cars across the Formula Student calendar. Comparable to GFR in three-platform strategy, top-tier sponsor portfolio, and recurring championship contention.
• TU Delft (DUT Racing): One of Europe's most decorated Formula Student teams, fielding combustion, electric, and driverless cars at the same international events GFR competes in. Closely comparable in mission, structure, and sponsor-funded nonprofit model.
• MRacing (University of Michigan): US Formula SAE team, among the most successful American entries. Comparable to GFR's Oregon State side in domestic competition and US automotive sponsor pipeline.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/global-formula-racing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Global Formula Racing E.v.