German automotive manufacturer Audi has penned a three-year deal to become the official sponsor of the UK’s Sky Sports F1 channel.
Contract:
- Full-channel deal covers every practice, qualifying and race session, as well as documentaries, analysis and features
- Includes coverage on Sky Sports’ broadcast, digital and social channels, plus the Sky Sports F1 podcast
Context:
This partnership comes ahead of Audi’s entry to Formula One next season when it will officially take over the Swiss-based Sauber outfit. The deal with Sky Sports F1 aims to improve brand awareness for the Volkswagen subsidiary in the UK, which is a key market for the company.
Pay-TV broadcaster Sky Sports is coming off the back of a 2024 season which broke viewing records, headlined by the most-watched British Grand Prix of all time. Sky also said that video views across its YouTube channel, website and app ‘significantly increased’.
Comment:
“Our partnership with Audi is truly multi-faceted,” said Karin Seymour, director of client and marketing at Sky Media.
“F1 has become one of the fastest-growing sports, with an increasingly diverse and engaged fan base driving record TV viewership and online engagement. As partners to Sky Sports F1, we’re helping Audi connect with this new wave of fans and be at the heart of the conversation.”
Tony Moore, head of marketing at Audi UK, added: “Innovative engineering has always been an Audi trademark, especially embodied in our range of performance cars.
“We’re excited to launch our partnership with Sky Sports Formula 1, the perfect platform through which to celebrate Vorsprung durch Technik.”
Coming next:
The partnership began on 18th February to coincide with Formula One’s 75th anniversary event at the O2 Arena in London. Audi’s branding will be attached to on-track action for the first time when preseason testing begins on 26th February, before the 2025 campaign gets underway in Australia from 14th to 16th March.
Go deeper:
- The SkyPad, Martin Brundle interviews, and remote production: Inside Sky Sports’ award-winning F1 coverage
- F1 2024 in numbers: Consistent viewership, strong attendances, and a boom in commercial partnerships
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