Sauber rebrands to Stake F1 Team after signing a 2-year partnership with Stake

Formula 1 team Sauber has entered into a two-year title partnership deal with crypto casino and sports betting platform Stake. As part of the deal, the Swiss racing team, previously under the Alfa Romeo name, becomes Stake F1 Team.

“Last season represented the start of Stake’s journey in Formula 1, and the brand’s new role headlining Stake F1 Team represents the natural and exciting next step on this path,” Team Representative Alessandro Alunni Bravi said in an announcement.

The exclusive partnership with the team, which features drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, will run throughout the 2024 and 2025 seasons and gives Stake full naming rights to the team.

If you think you already know, think again… 👀

Serving 1.1.2024 pic.twitter.com/v3j25gaJL4

— Alfa Romeo F1 Team Stake (@alfaromeostake) December 19, 2023

The rebrand was launched by Canadian rapper Drake, who is one of Stake’s celebrity partners. 

Bravi added: “Stake not only successfully tapped into Formula One’s growing fan base to enhance its own community, but also introduced a completely new audience to the sport, something that benefitted not only our team but also everyone else in F1.

“We had the opportunity to participate in some incredible activations with some of Stake’s ambassadors, including Argentine football legend Sergio Aguero and Indian-Canadian rapper Karan Aujla. 2024 will be a new page and the chance to do more, better, and reach even farther: we are looking forward to an even more exciting calendar of events in this new season.”

Earlier in December, F1 announced that the Swiss team will operate under this banner for the next two seasons before rebranding as Audi in 2026 when they become the German manufacturer’s works squad. Stake joined Sauber as a co-title partner for 2023 and will now level up the partnership as the sole title partner.

In recent years, several blockchain and cryptocurrency sponsorships have been featured on F1. These included Tezos, OKX, Binance, OpenSea, ByBit, among others.