The world’s number one luxury brand LVMH is committing to a global partnership with Formula 1 for 10 years, starting in 2025, a sponsorship investment worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The group of French billionaire Bernard Arnault, who has already been one of the main partners of the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Press reports had mentioned a future sponsorship investment in Formula 1 of around $150 million per year but the amount of this partnership, in which several LVMH brands will be involved (Louis Vuitton, Moët Hennessy and Tag Heuer) is “less than 100 million” dollarsa source close to the matter told AFP.
LVMH thus joins Formula 1 sponsors such as DHL, Heineken, MSC Croisières, Pirelli and Qatar Airways. The luxury brand Rolex is also on the list of partners but press information suggests its departure in favor of Tag Heuer (a brand of the LVMH group) as timekeeper.
The presence of LVMH, owner in particular of the Louis Vuitton brand and numerous wines and spirits, will be seen “through hospitality, tailor-made activations, limited editions and exclusive content”, according to the press release announcing the partnership. Details will be revealed in early 2025.
“The collaboration with one of the LVMH houses (Moët Hennessy, Editor’s note) during the Las Vegas Grand Prix last year won us over, and this is why we wanted to extend today our relationship with the group which becomes a global partner,” said Greg Maffei, CEO of Liberty Media, owner of the Formula 1 franchise since 2017, quoted in the press release.
American market
Liberty Media popularized the sport by targeting a more feminine and younger audiencenotably thanks to the “Drive to survive” series, underlines the Wall Street Journal, according to which in three years F1 has gone from a single race in the United States to three, to which are added two Grands Prix.
For LVMH, the interest is very concrete: the United States is one of the main luxury markets globally. Anything that increases the visibility of the group is positive.
“In motorsport as in our industry, from fashion to watchmaking, every detail counts on the path to success,” said CEO Bernard Arnault, quoted in the press release.
“For many years, several of our houses have been involved in Formula 1 (…) we wish to strengthen this experiential dimension that Formula 1 offers throughout the world. This partnership is only in its beginnings and the next seasons promise to be extraordinary”, promises his son, Frédéric Arnault, who heads the Watches division of LVMH and quoted in the press release.
Interviewed by the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, he explained: “We are only at the beginning of our journey in the United States” with F1 where “there is a very young audience”. “I think it’s reassuring. And that’s also what convinced us. Ten years ago, it was an aging audience.”
If the group’s brands (Louis Vuitton, Tiffany, Tag Heuer, etc.) are already present in sports competitions, this is only the second time, with the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, that LVMH has signed a sports partnership. in his own name.
LVMH negotiated maximum visibility this summer by becoming a “premium” partner of the Paris Olympics, for 150 million euros according to a source close to the matter at AFP.
“It’s not a question of short-term business,” declared Antoine Arnault, head of “Image and environment” of the group and another son of the CEO, in charge of the negotiations for the Olympic Games.
He said he hoped “that (this partnership) enhances the image of the group and its houses”. In 2023, LVMH achieved a turnover of more than 86 billion euros and a net profit of more than 15 billion euros.
