Ferrari recently announced its new sponsor in UniCredit from the 2025 F1 season. The international bank is set to partner with the Italian giants after Santander announced their departure from the list of sponsors.
Ferrari recently published a press release on their official website, stating that UniCredit will start its partnership with the team on January 1, 2025. The press release added a multi-year deal has been done between the team and the international bank.
"(‘Ferrari’ or the ‘Company’) announces that, effective January 1, 2025, UniCredit S.p.A. will partner with Ferrari S.p.A., its wholly-owned subsidiary, to be at its side in its Formula 1 racing activities under a multi-year agreement," the statement read.
Reports suggest that UniCredit could be a direct replacement for Ferrari's long-term partner, Spanish banking giant Santander, whose logo has been on the team's cars and merchandise. However, the team has not yet confirmed the form of partnership with the Italian bank.
Santander has been a Ferrari sponsor for a long time now. They started their sponsorship in 2010, from which point both cars and merchandise had the bank's name. This partnership continued till 2017, after which Santander left the Italian giants. However, both rejoined forces in 2021, bringing back the iconic brand and logo on team overalls. Reports say that Ferrari and Santander's current deal totaled $60,000,000 per year.
UniCredit has also been a sponsor in other sports, such as for the UEFA Champions League from 2009 to 2018, Serie A football teams, and even a few regional tennis tournaments.
Ferrari issues statement confirming termination of partnership with Santander
On August 31, 2024, Ferrari officially released a statement confirming that they would be terminating their partnership with Santander on December 31, 2024. Since Santander has a long history with the Italian giants, it will mark the end of an era.
When Santander returned as a sponsor to Ferrari in 2022, the deal was for three years, ending in 2024. The scarlet-hued team and the Spanish bank decided to part ways instead of extending their deal.
An official press release was issued from Maranello and was posted on the team's official website.
"Ferrari announces the termination of the partnership between Ferrari S.p.A., its wholly-owned subsidiary, and Santander, effective as of December 31st, of 2024 since the committed three-year contract will end.
"The partnership, which began in January 2022 after a previous collaboration from 2010 to 2017, saw Santander alongside our Company in the sporting activities of the Prancing Horse. Santander has been Premium Partner of Scuderia Ferrari in Formula 1 and has been our partner in the Le Mans Hypercar (LMH) programme," the statement read.
Ferrari currently stands third in the constructors' championship with 407 points and is chasing second-placed McLaren (438 points) and defending world champions Red Bull (446 points).