Santander quits relationship with Ferrari effective Dec. 31, 2017

Banco Santander abandons Formula 1 by breaking the sponsorship with Ferrari

The financial institution has decided not to continue as the main sponsor of the Italian team after an alliance of eight years and a direct investment of almost 300 million.

The next season of Formula 1 will not have the white flame on a red background that characterizes the Banco Santander logo. The financial group chaired by Ana Botín has decided not to continue with the sponsorship of the great prizes of motorsport and, above all, of Ferrari . According to sources close to the talks, the Spanish entity has rejected the proposal of the Italian team to continue as the main 'partner' of its cars after eight years financing the pilots of the 'Cavallino Rampante'.

Banco Santander has been paying 40 million euros per season for putting its mark on the monkeys of Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen, its two stars today, and formerly of Felipe Massa and Fernando Alonso . Because the arrival of the Asturian to Ferrari in 2010 was what encouraged the first Spanish bank by capitalization to make the largest investment in its history in the world of sponsorships. Emilio Botín, lover of the races, was the true promoter of this agreement that linked to two brands of undoubted prestige and that he sought to facilitate that Alonso returned to become champion of the world.

After a promising start and two runners-up - the first he lost in the last race, just before Vettel - the four seasons of Alonso at Ferrari were disappointing to the point that in 2014 the team did not get any victory for the first time in twenty-one years . The Spanish driver left Maranello that season on the road to McLaren, but Santander had already decided in 2012 to extend the initial agreement with the Italian firm, which expired in 2014, until the end of 2017.

Precisely, next December 31, the alliance between the bank and the team expires. According to sources close to the talks, Santander has not accepted the demands of Ferrari, which has asked for an additional effort of 40 million per season. The financial institution, which has spent $ 280 million to wear the historic red fireballs, plus another amount close to 10 million euros for baptizing the grand prizes, is not for the task of prolonging the agreement.

It is possible that Santander will continue with Ferrari as a secondary 'sponsor', but other sources say that the distance is now so great that the most logical thing is to completely abandon the sponsorship of the Italian team and Formula 1. Banco Santander is spent 450 million in total in markéting if investment in other sponsorships is included, such as La Liga and Copa Libertadores in Latin America, advertising, promotional events, trips with clients, employees and interest groups.

A profitability that is expensive

A motor circus that, as explained by the entity on several occasions, has generated a large return on investment in the proportion of three euros for each euro paid, according to data audited by Mediasport Marketing and Havas Sport. These signatures measure how many times the bank's name or logo appears on television and the photographs in press regarding the cost that a traditional advertising insertion would have.

Emilio Botín, lover of the races, was the true promoter of this agreement that linked two brands of undoubted prestige

According to official figures, F1 has a legion of 400 million unique spectators. In Spain there are 13 million fans , which add to the 52 million in Brazil; the 20 million from the United Kingdom and the 26 million from Germany, countries where Banco Santander is one of the reference banks and where the great prizes were baptized with the name of the Spanish group. 30% of the followers of the F1 are located in these main markets of the entity, which represent more than half of the benefit.

The general director of Communication, Corporate Marketing and Studies of Santander, as well as vice president of Santander Spain, Juan Manuel Cendoya , has stated on several occasions that the average return has been even "higher" than that obtained by the entity during the stage of Fernando Alonso in the Italian team. However, now he has decided to get out of the car because driving a Ferrari has become too expensive in the face of the pretensions of the owners of the luxury car brand.

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Hope your right Sid. Thats a good chunk of change annually.

 

copy that, forgot about that.

 

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