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Vodafone To Sponsor Ferrari F1 Team
26.5.01
Vodafone, the UK mobile phone operator, has signed a three-year sponsorship deal with the Ferrari Formula One team, extending its brand beyond existing links with Manchester United and the English cricket team in an effort to give it a more global feel.
The deal will see "significant branding" for Vodafone appearing on the Ferrari race car, the drivers' overalls and helmets from the start of the 2002 season. It will also allow Vodafone to offer Ferrari branded services for supporters of the team, who are Formula One's reigning champions
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Vodafone said the deal was part of a process started late last year with the effort to re-brand its diverse range of world-wide subsidiaries with a single Vodafone brand and would allow customers to "recognise the Vodafone network wherever they are".
Chris Gent, chief executive, said: "We like backing winners. We are the world's leading mobile telecoms company and it is our objective for Vodafone to be recognised as one of the leading global brands. I am confident that the sponsorship of Ferrari, with the immensely valuable media coverage that Formula One attracts, will help us towards achieving this ambition."
Financial terms were not disclosed but there was speculation of a possible £35m a year. Vodafone spent £30m on a four-year deal with Manchester United in February 2000, and £12m on a four-year deal with the English and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in December.
Vodafone said that, as a consequence of its Mannesmann acquisition, the company was also sponsoring the Benetton F1 team for the rest of this season. Orange, its mobile phone rival, sponsors the Arrows F1 team.
source: The Financial Times
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