What about Ferrari’s livery free livery last year? It was as if they were waiting all year for a big sponsor who never showed up!

Big teams in any major sport are able to attract much bigger sponsors than the smaller teams.

These sponsors will pay much more if you have a limited number of other sponsors as it adds to the exclusivity and also gives a better image of there being a partnership rather than just a financial deal.

I can’t remember the figures but I read a few years ago that Marlboro were paying far more for their sponsorship stickers than most other sponsors for other teams were paying for the same space on the car due to Ferrari having less sponsors than the other teams.

Having less sponsors also allows you to focus on the ones that they do have so the advertising is far more effective.

I bet Ferrari made as much if not more than the other teams as far as sponsorship is concerned.

I loved the retro suits too, it’s a nice look.

DG & Alex – I thought that barcode thing looked horrible on the Ferrari. The one Rossi drove last week was tobacco-free: Valentino Rossi’s Ferrari test (Pictures)

Chris – Apparently so, but this is not just a problem that’s unique to F1. As the article points out there a shift between on-TV and on-internet demand for live coverage for all sports and probably other stuff too.