Formula 1 has announced a ‘long-term’ global sponsorship deal with Saudi Arabia’s state-owned oil company, Saudi Aramco.
Formula 1 has confirmed it has signed a new ‘long-term’ deal with Saudi Aramco to become a global sponsor of the sport. This means the Saudi oil and gas giant will join DHL, Pirelli, Heineken, Emirates and Rolex on Formula 1’s sponsor roster, with Amarco becoming the title sponsor of three Grands Prix in 2020 – the United States, Hungarian and Spanish races.
Saudi Aramco is the world’s most valuable company, and the most profitable in the world. This follows a recent stock market listing of just 1.5 per cent of the company, which valued it at almost $2 trillion, and one of the most valuable in terms of profits which exceeded $110bn in 2019.
It will also work with F1 on developing sustainable fuels, enhanced engine efficiencies and emerging mobility technology in a bid to accelerate the sport’s sustainability plan.
“We are delighted to welcome Aramco to the Formula 1 family as a long-term Global Partner as we start our 2020 season,” said Formula 1 CEO Chase Carey.
“We are looking forward to sharing our combined expertise and working with Aramco on technological innovation and we will benefit hugely from its capabilities and expertise in the fuel and energy sector.”
The deal is expected to be part of a wider expansion into Saudi Arabia which recently announced plans to host a round of the F1 Championship at a newly constructed purpose-built circuit in a new entertainment and business development outside of the capital city, Riyadh.
Aramco President and CEO Amin H. Nasser added: “We are excited to partner with Formula 1, a strong global sports brand with millions of fans around the world. As the world’s largest energy supplier and an innovation leader, we have the ambition to find game-changing solutions for better-performing engines and cleaner energy. Partnerships like these are important to help us to deliver on our ambitions.”
