F1 Inks Emirates To Five-Year Branding Deal; Ecclestone Suggests Team Could Be Next

F1 today announced a five-year deal with Emirates in which the airline will serve as a Global Partner of the racing series. Emirates' branding starting with the March 22-24 Malaysian Grand Prix will be displayed on F1 circuit bridges, ground signs and the F1 Paddock Club (F1). The FINANCIAL TIMES’ Kerr & Blitz reported the deal is “worth about" $200M (all figures U.S.), making it “one of the biggest in motorsport.” Emirates “last dabbled" in F1 in ‘06 when it “sponsored the McLaren racing team, but the sponsorship lasted a year.” It is “understood that under the terms of the agreement its livery will not be on display at the Abu Dhabi and Bahrain Grand Prix” (FINANCIAL TIMES, 2/5). REUTERS' Praveen Menon writes Emirates has until “now focused on” soccer, but is trying to "outdo regional rivals for global prominence." Emirates Chair & CEO Sheikh Ahmed said that the airline's “total sports sponsorship" now stood at $272.3M this year. F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone said it would now be "the natural thing to do" for Emirates to launch an F1 racing team (REUTERS, 2/5). The AP’s Michael Casey writes the deal for Emirates "is just the latest sponsorship deal involving a major sport.” It already is a FIFA official partner and "recently signed a five-year deal with the ATP which begins this year.” The F1 deal also “comes days after [a] new five-year shirt sponsorship deal” with Ligue 1 club Paris Saint-Germain, the “big-spending French soccer team that signed David Beckham” (AP, 2/5).