Following Alex Albon's renewal, Williams provided a refreshingly honest insight into the step after the Stingray kissing (https://www.williamsf1.com/posts/355281d1-82f4-46dc-8477-aeaa67fb7e04/watch-alex-james-future?cid=sm_linkedin_td_news_link_051524). Their lawyers will now send Albon’s new contract to the Contract Recognition Board (𝐂𝐑𝐁). All F1 lawyers know this process very well and it’s administratively complicated. The detail is confidential to the F1 Concorde Agreement.
However, I know that soggy documents (unless referring to wet ink signatures!) won’t have been appreciated so I hope they dried out on the way to Geneva!
👩⚖️ What is the CRB?
Independent body set up by the FIA in 1991 to be quicker / cheaper / easier than F1 Teams going to national courts for team vs team driver contract disputes
The F1 Teams agree contractually that the CRB is the arbiter for disputes between F1 teams over who has a valid contract with each driver
Has dealt with 4 disputes:
(A) 1999: Pedro Diniz: Sauber vs Arrows; ruled for Sauber
(B) 2004: Jenson Button: BAR vs Williams; ruled for BAR
(C) 2007: Timo Glock: Toyota vs BMW Sauber; ruled for Toyota
(D) 2022: Oscar Piastri: Alpine vs McLaren; ruled for McLaren
❓Does it work?
Yes, I think so. The small number of driver contract disputes in F1 suggests its existence alone acts as a suitable deterrent and encourages good practice
No team has ever tried to challenge the CRB’s authority in “real” court (although in 1999, Arrows failed in a breach of contract case against Diniz after losing the CRB case)
🔮 What next?
Over the past few years, officials in MotoGP and IndyCar have called for the introduction of a CRB-equivalent following a multitude of rider/driver contract disputes (presumably because everyone's spending a fortune on lawyers!)
In football, the recent opinion from AG Szpunar on the FIFA rules on transfer of players potentially being contrary to EU law on the free movement of people may impact the CRB's existence restricting driver transfers. However, I expect the key differences between the FIFA rules and the way the CRB operates (eg that the latter has no separate financial penalties for the new contracting team) should protect the current CRB model unless a team or driver wants to get creative!