Ferrari facing $55 million loss after splitting with two premium partners

According to a recent report from RacingNews365, Scuderia Ferrari and cryptocurrency company Velas (VLX) will not renew their collaboration following a partnership that lasted just 12 months.

Starting with January 1, the Velas (VLX) logo no longer appears on Scuderia Ferrari’s premium partner list. The logo of chip semi-conductor company Snapdragon has also been removed. Both sponsors were considered premium partners of the Maranello team.

This abrupt change has sparked speculation in the world of wedden op Formule 1, stirring the betting odds and strategies for all those invested in the sport. The landscape of Formula 1 has been subject to massive disruptions and shifts in recent times, largely due to the volatile financial situation of prominent sponsors. A crucial aspect of these developments has been the emergence of cryptocurrencies and digital technologies as significant contributors to the sport. However, the abrupt termination of contracts between these tech giants and Formula 1 teams has indeed brought unforeseen challenges, affecting not just the teams but also shaking the dynamics of Formula 1 betting.

Scuderia Ferrari officially confirmed a long-term contract with cryptocurrency company Velas ahead of the 2022 Formula 1 championship, as branding was displayed on the F1-75 car and Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz’s racing suits.

Yet, according to RacingNews365, a source close to both parties has confirmed that the Maranello team did not comply with clauses that permit Velas to create NFT images, while the cryptocurrency company is also going through a difficult moment from a financial point of view. According to the source legal action is being contemplated by the parties to end the partnership.

The crypto environment has collapsed in recent months: in November, Sam Bankman-Fried’s cryptocurrency exchange FTX filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S, leaving Mercedes with a loss of about $15m. As a result, the German team removed all FTX branding from its branded assets in the last rounds of the 2022 F1 season, as Team boss Toto Wolff pointed out at that moment that more Formula 1 teams would be affected by this situation: “Every team has sponsors like that, and so does the Formula 1 organization as such. So everyone would be affected,” Toto Wolff explained, as the cryptocurrency wave in Formula One is indeed coming to an end.

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As for the Qualcomm Technologies deal, which became a premium partner of the Maranello team in February last year, with the logo for its Snapdragon Digital Chassis solution featuring on Ferrari’s F1-75 challenger, the separation seems to be mutual, with an official press release expected in the next few days.

Ferrari chief executive officer Benedetto Vigna previously worked for semi-conductor rival STMicro, but for now it is not clear if the contract termination can be linked to this situation.

Ferrari teamed up with Qualcomm technologies as their premium partner for digital technologies. The company was working with the Italian team on the data and analysis side of their digital cockpit. At the same time, Qualcomm Technologies and Mercedes recently confirmed a big ‘cockpit’ electronics joint venture, which means that the Snapdragon brand could also sign a deal with the German side and therefore remain in Formula 1.

Losing Velas and Snapdragon as sponsors means that Scuderia Ferrari now face a huge loss in terms of financial resources: according to RacingNews365, the partnership with Velas (VLX) was worth $30m per year, while Snapdragon’s was paying the Italian side about $25m, while also providing technical support.

Velas and Snapdragon therefore represented about a quarter of Ferrari’s commercial revenue for the previous year. The Maranello team will now be looking for potential replacements and new partnerships to limit the loss.