Formula One has confirmed it is in talks with the Vietnamese government to add a new street race in Hanoi, but the motor-racing championship has played down speculation a deal could be sealed for as soon as next season.

The South East Asian country has been repeatedly linked to an F1 race deal in recent years and the Forbes website in January reported that a street race for the capital city of Hanoi was on the agenda at a meeting of the Formula One Promoters Association, the body which represents grand prix organisers, in London.

Vietnam’s addition to the calendar will bolster the sport’s position on the continent after Malaysia staged its final grand prix last season. Former F1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has previously admitted that he rejected a lucrative deal to stage a Vietnam Grand Prix before he was ousted as part of the takeover which saw Liberty Media assume control of the sport at the beginning of 2017.

Vietnam is reported to have offered around $391.2m (€319.9m) for a 10-year race contract, but Ecclestone said he declined the chance to meet the country’s president to sign an agreement. Commenting on the prospect of a Vietnam GP, Sean Bratches, Formula One’s managing director of commercial operations, told the Associated Press news agency: “We think Hanoi could come on in the next couple of years, and we're working with the Hanoi government to that end.

“This (Hanoi) is a street race where we can go downtown, where we can activate a large fan base. And you have extraordinary iconography from a television standpoint.”

The F1 calendar has increased to 21 races this season, with France and Germany returning and Malaysia exiting. The sport has never gone beyond 21 races in a season and Formula One is keen to take the calendar up to 24 or 25 events in the future.

Bratches (pictured) said Berlin, Paris and London would be potentially attractive venues, adding: “There's more interest than we have capacity in the schedule. We want to be very selective. Those cities from an economic impact standpoint would find us value, as do others around the world. It's very important for us as we move forward to go to locations that are a credit to the Formula One brand.”

Formula One’s contract with regulatory body the International Automobile Federation (FIA) allows it to add four more races to the calendar. However, its contracts with the teams state that it requires majority consent from Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull Racing to hold more than 20 events per season.