Tommy Hilfiger and Jim Beam have been announced as team partners so farCadillac could also reportedly sign two to three premium partners worth up to US$50m each annually, in lieu of title partner
The Cadillac Formula One team are seeking up to US$70 million a year from a potential title sponsor, according to Sports Business Journal (SBJ).
Leading teams McLaren and Red Bull reportedly have title deals worth around US$100 million each, so Cadillac is pursuing a sizeable contract in comparison. By contrast, MoneyGram is paying around US$20 million annually to title sponsor Haas, a team expected to finish ahead of Cadillac next season.
To date, Cadillac have only secured two partnerships. Jim Beam signed on as official spirits partner earlier this week, following Tommy Hilfiger’s deal as the team’s first partner.
SBJ reports that Cadillac’s title sponsor would receive full naming rights, global marketing rights, category exclusivity, and the ability to use team branding and assets. The package would also include the usual benefits for a Formula One title sponsor, such as branding on the car in areas with the highest media value.
Related posts:
Despite Cadillac’s lofty asking price, Chris Lencheski, cofounder of advisory firm SKI Partners and chairman and chief executive of marketing services and communications company Phoenicia Sport & Entertainment, told SBJ that interest in joining the outfit’s partnership portfolio is high.
“There is a significant amount of quality companies in quality sectors, with larger interest coming offshore than domestic currently, in sponsoring General Motors’ relationship to Formula One,” he said.
“Because they are arguably, depending on any given year, the largest or second largest automotive manufacturer in the world. Any time that kind of company comes to a new form of any sport, let alone motorsport, which is a cornerstone, hallmark, signature obligation of global performance marketing in automotive, it’s going to spur a lot of interest.”
This chimes with what Cadillac team principal Graeme Lowdon told BlackBook Motorsport earlier this year.
“I’m certainly encouraged by the level of interest that we’ve had,” said Lowdon. “In fact, for a growing team, the interest levels risks outstripping our capacity to deal with it in the short term. So from that point of view, it’s very, very encouraging, and I’m certainly hopeful that we would be able to bring some innovative new partnerships into into F1 and some existing ones as well.”
Per SBJ, if a title partner proves too difficult to secure, Cadillac are also considering having two to three premium partners in deals worth between US$40 million and US$50 million annually.
The team is also reportedly looking for three to five premium partners valued at up to US$30 million each, at least eight official team partners worth between US$3 million and US$15 million, and technical supplier deals starting at US$500,000 per year.