Claiming Your Company’s Place in World Class Motor Sport

It should not be a surprise to anyone that Formula 1 (F1) is an extremely expensive sport.? The world’s top drivers, most sophisticated cars, glamourous circuits, massive global coverage, social media that blows up with every race.? It’s no wonder that paying for a small sticker on an F1 car starts at $1M.? And that will be one small sticker amongst several others.

With the incredible impact that the Netflix production, “Drive to Survive” has had, there has never been as much attention given to F1. And the overall value of sponsorship deals is expected to reach more than $500 million in 2024.

Let’s be clear: what companies get for their contribution to that sponsorship value is a lot more than a sticker on a car. There is all the related branding, marketing, event coordination and target market activation that comes with it.? My own research has confirmed that a big part of the perceived value to companies that sponsor a team, is the opportunity for their clients and customers to be associated with the sport.? If you are a CEO trying to make the most of a high value relationship with a Fortune 1000 company, hosting a relevant meeting during a race weekend, and offering your clients the opportunity to mingle and meet with a participating team, has massive ROI.? I have seen for myself how key decision makers reveal a completely different level of almost childlike enthusiasm when they get to walk through the garage, shake hands with a top driver, even hang out on the pit wall in some race series.

Liberty Media has achieved huge success in promoting F1 to a larger global audience, and this has had a very tangible halo effect on other racing series. The World Endurance Championship now features nine different car manufacturers and the viewing figures clearly show the increased interest. The 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 2023 counted 300,000 fans in attendance over the race weekend, with 113 million viewers watching from countries all around the World. And the qualifying series for the World’s biggest, oldest and most famous race, including the European Le Mans Series, IMSA, and the Asian Le Mans Series are all seeing significant increases in competing teams, race attendees, on-line views, and participating sponsors.

The 2024 24 Hours of Le Mans will include 16 current or former F1 drivers which serves as an important cross-over from F1 to Endurance racing.? Increasingly, younger drivers rising through the single seater ranks, make very successful switches to Endurance racing, and enjoy opportunities to win races, to win Le Mans, and to win entire championships.? Having spoken to some of these young drivers, they all say that we are in the golden age of Endurance racing.? There has never been a better time to get involved.

As a company, looking for opportunities to leverage the huge commercial power of motor sport, the costs of entering F1 can be quite demoralising; but clearly there are now options.

Developing awareness of your brand, getting access to a platform for corporate entertainment during a race event, and associating your product or service with the success of a race team can all be achieved far more realistically and reasonably with Endurance racing.

Whereas a small sticker on the wing mirror of an F1 car costs at least $5 million, you can secure TITLE SPONSORSHIP of a top-flight, multi-championship winning Endurance racing team, with top drivers, for an entire year.? That means your brand drives the entire livery of the car (or two), the garage, driver’s overalls, crew uniforms, trucks and full PR support.? $5 million for global coverage including your brand clear and present on the famous starting grid at Le Mans, and dedicated professionals to help your brand stand out via social media, broadcast channels, dedicated productions and extensive photo coverage.? $5 million for you to bring your customers, clients or employees to a special event where they can meet the team, enjoy VIP hospitality, meet the drivers, be on the pit wall as the cars cross the finish line, get sprayed by champagne (optional), and really experience the full racing landscape.

Of course if title sponsorship is a bit too much of a commitment at this time, you can still enjoy a subset of these benefits for smaller budgets.? A featured placement on an engine cover starts at $250,000 for example.? On an F1 car, that would cost $25 million. Your brand on a rear wing starts at $10,000. In F1 that starts at $5 million.

These prices are already rising as the value of this platform is recognised, so there is no time like the present to talk to the right teams and secure a deal for the remainder of this year and next season.

If you are curious about how to make this a reality, send me a message and I would be very happy to share more information with you, and to get you and your company featured on winning cars this year or next. I have seen a significant increase in sponsorship enquiries; don't lose this rare opportunity to secure your involvement in World class motor sport.