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Forex and CFD brokers are expanding their Formula 1 sponsorship activity as the sport reports a fanbase of more than 830 million people, up 12% year-on-year. For trading firms, the commercial task is not simply to put a logo in front of viewers. Partnerships can support customer engagement and brand activity across the season.
XMTrading, Vantage, Pepperstone, IC Markets, AvaTrade, Libertex and INFINOX have joined the sponsorship market. FxPro has a longer-running link with McLaren, dating from 2018, after earlier team sponsorships with BMW Sauber and Virgin Racing. Ampere Analysis puts overall Formula 1 sponsorship spending above US$3 billion: teams account for more than US$2 billion, with the remaining US$1 billion attributed to the sport's commercial rights holders.
Why brokers want wider reach
Brand placement is only one part of the case. SponsorUnited's Formula 1 Sponsorship Intelligence Report 2025 identifies technology as the biggest sponsoring sector, with US$543 million invested, and financial services in second place.
Team partnerships can cost US$5 million to US$20 million per season, while top-tier deals may require substantially more. That scale makes the work around a rights deal central to its value.
The calendar offers brokers a way to address distinct audiences in different settings. Silverstone and Monza bring historic circuit identities, while Monaco, Singapore, Miami, Las Vegas and Abu Dhabi provide other destination environments. Firms can select events and activities for different regional markets, client groups and commercial aims, rather than treating every race as the same activation.
Race weekends also encompass more than track activity. Hospitality, concerts, fashion, dining, celebrity appearances and networking sit alongside the racing.
Brokers can use options such as Paddock Club access, pit lane walks, garage visits and driver appearances. These settings can bring VIP clients and prospective customers together with business partners, affiliates and introducing brokers. The sport's reach also spans North America, the GCC, Europe and Asia-Pacific, giving firms a shared sponsorship platform with scope for regional engagement.
Activations need delivery planning
Examples of how brokers use those rights include FxPro's McLaren partnership and Pepperstone's work with Aston Martin Aramco, as Finance Magnates reported. FxPro's Strategy Debrief series uses McLaren race strategy and decisions as the subject of behind-the-scenes content. It connects the team's decision-making with themes of precision and risk management in financial markets.
Pepperstone has built client and partner events around its Aston Martin Aramco relationship. Its examples include pit-lane dinners, yacht hospitality in Monaco, driver meet-and-greets, garage tours and track days at Silverstone. Such formats give the broker ways to engage current clients, prospective customers and business partners outside a standard race-day setting.
Delivery varies from one Grand Prix to another. Circuits, organisers, transport, local customs and hospitality facilities differ, so planning starts with invitations and travel and continues through the race weekend. Concerts, fan activities, paddock access and other events add further options; off-track visits to team factories and technical facilities, or sessions with team principals, technical staff and drivers, can extend the programme.
For brokers, the commercial question is also whether the relationship can create value for both parties beyond buying rights and access. Integrating a broker's products, technology or services into the wider Formula 1 ecosystem could provide a basis for case studies that show value to the rights holder as well as a credible story for clients and industry stakeholders. The source gives no breakdown of activation costs or measures of return.
What this means on the desk
Operations teams should establish what the sponsorship includes, which events and audiences it is intended to serve, and who owns each part of delivery. How will invitations, travel, guest access and follow-up be coordinated across locations? Which teams are responsible for regional activity, and what reporting will show whether the planned engagement took place?
Before committing to a programme, brokers should also ask how rights fees, hospitality and content production fit into the total operating cost, and what evidence will be used to assess commercial value. If products or technology are to be integrated into a team or rights-holder operation, what systems, responsibilities and approvals would that require? Those answers determine whether a sponsorship remains a visibility purchase or becomes a managed business programme.
