It's no secret to anyone that Formula One is an expensive sport to participate in and the Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Team is keeping up with the pace year after year on and off the race track. The question that everyone asks is simply "Where does this money come from?" For the Ferrari Formula One Team, since the year 2000 to where the team secured its first driver's title in over 20 years, the total in depth listing of their sponsors is made up on the chart listed below up until the year 2005. This chart provides each and every sponsor that provided Ferrari with both direct and/or trade support with their respective totals for the last six years. Obtaining sponsors, catering and bringing them satisfaction with the knowledge of having them obtain a return on their investment is not an easy task. The currency fluctuations of the US dollar declines with the Euro Dollar increasing spelled only trouble for the team, since, their costs are in Euro Dollars and their sponsorship revenue is in US dollars, with this, Ferrari have been faced with various new challenges outside the racing track to maintain and keep up against the competition in this new decade. Ferrari's President, Luca Di Montezemolo is always proactive, with suggestions of a Ferrari stock floatation that has yet to take off, but, meanwhile, found new solutions to keep the Ferrari team operating on a budget of more than 300 usd million a year season after season while obtaining nothing less than success on and off the track even when faced with various obstacles on his driving path.

Starting with the year 2000, Ferrari operated on a total budget of 239.60 usd million to where they received 65 usd million from the Phillip Morris company (Marlboro) playing a significant role in covering the driver's salaries of Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello. During this year, Ferrari was 90% owned by Fiat and 10% by Pierro Ferrari. 55 usd million came from Ferrari SPA consisting of their merchandise sales to which was part of the high wave of Ferrari merchandise sales era. Fiat and Shell provided a total of 20 usd million each. (Click here for Shell's "Refuelling" commercial - RealVideo format) This was also the year to where the Ferrari sponsors were able to advertise with triumph status and obtain excellent returns for their association with the Scuderia and companies such as Fiat, Tic Tac, and, Federal Express did not hesitate to link their connection and increase their advertising budgets. An example of this is seen on the Tic Tac commercial included here (ASF format). The team's major sponsors obtained huge returns from the television coverage usually associated with the team that is first and second in the championship since they evidently hog up the television camera’s viewing during the races. This budget and great help from Ferrari's trade supporters allowed the team to finally win their first driver's title in 21 years and also win their second consecutive Constructor's title. Ferrarí's staff was constantly rewarded with gifts from the team's sponsors and nice bonus packages from the Scuderia Ferrari Team. It was likely the best time to be a Ferrari employee and tifosi starting the new decade with both titles.

The year of 2001 season represented the title defence, and the team's budget increased by 44.75 usd in respect to their 2000 season. This is also the year to where Phillip Morris (Marlboro) provided an extra 20 usd million trade support giving the team an incredible 86 usd million and making it a regular contribution from that year and on. Also, Ferrari's merchandise sales reached levels of approximately 40 usd million covering a large portion of the team's 60 usd million trade support. The dream team went on to win the title and prove that the year 2000 was no flash in the pan. Also, this year, represented their 3rd straight constructor's title representing their impressive teamwork. Shell, Fiat, and Bridgestone contributed more financial backing in 2001 than they did on the previous year, notably, on the trade support front. Montezemolo, continued to speak about a stock floatation to increase its revenues in the near future.

Ferrari's sponsorship money: 2000-2005 (Click here to download PDF version)

Everyone expected the team to do well in the year 2002 but nobody expected the Ferrari 2002 domination. The team in 2002 landed a huge and important sponsor being Vodafone, the largest telecom company in the world with the same red colors such as Ferrari making the deal a marriage made in heaven.

Ferrari-Vodafone advertisement with Megan Gale.

This coverage of the car left no choice to the team to say goodbye and not renew the contracts of Federal Express and Tic Tac Ferrero. Vodafone was well covered on the car and on the team's clothing second to only Marlboro. In addition, Vodafone revamped Ferrari's official website and finally turned it into something the fans were seeking for years. AMD was also introduced and became an important sponsor for the team providing pertinent data that would eventually enable the team to progress quicker in every aspect of their races. With the victories and success, the team increases its prestige with selling more Ferrari street cars than ever. Also, the team went on to win 15 out of 17 races dominating the season like nobody can and as expected with records broken in almost every possible manner. This was surely the dream team year. It also represented the first time the Scuderia operated on a 300 usd million + budget. The team was also feeling the Euro pressure since the team's operating costs were in Euro dollars and their sales were mostly in US dollars giving them a new possible dilemma to deal with in the following years. Ferrari had planned a stock market flotation for 2002 but that was called off because of adverse market conditions. With success, the team would not have a problem to attract new sponsorship, but, with so much space on the car already covered or owned by Marlboro, the sky wasn't the limit.

One hardcore Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro tifoso

Ferrari's domination was something the FIA wanted to cool down and 2003 was the year to where the team did not dominate. The sponsorship budget for the first time in this decade went down as opposed to the usual upward spiral. In comparison to 2002, Ferrari operated with a 27 usd million less sponsorship enrollment with 8 usd million being provided to them as an FOM gratuity. This year was marked by 2003 Fiat's chairman's death Gianni Agnelli's death to where the team used his initials on the actual car F2003-GA as a tribute. On the track, the team continued to perform although fighting a much closer battle and wrapping up once again both titles to continue the amazing streak of this new decade.

Following the team's tougher 2003 challenge, 2004 was supposed to have been a tougher challenge with Fiat, the parent company experiencing very tough economical issues cutting their usual contribution of 25 usd million to 10 usd million to the Scuderia Ferrari Formula One Team. (Michael looking to trade-in his Ferrari? Look here to find out - ASF format)). Fiat's dismal performance needed lots of boosting and Ferrari was doing every it could to promote the car maker in the most positive possible manner to allow and help it get back on its feet. Rumours were circulating that Fiat would have been forced to sell the Ferrari brand but Mr. Montezemolo had other plans to assure this would not happen. 2004 is the year to where Ferrari receives Acer and Olympus as two new sponsors that bring life to Ferrari and its product line introducing Ferrari laptops, computers and, Ferrari digital camera's to the consumer market. Everything remained consistent on the major sponsor’s front line. F1 Business Magazine reported in 2004 that the Ferrari Scuderia Formula One Team lost 35 usd million due to the currency exchanges between the Euro and US Dollar. Ferrari's revenues, sponsorship returns are all in US dollars while most of their expenses are in Euro Dollars which has become much higher and caused a significant problem to Ferrari's pocket books. On a good note, the Formula One Management had given the team 54 usd million as opposed to the usual 22-23 usd million plus a 10 million usd bonus as a sign of appreciation for Ferrari's dedication to Formula One seen by many as Formula One's Management method in getting Ferrari to sign in the new F1 Concorde Agreement that was coming up. This did not go that easy with the other teams of course. A reduction of sponsorship funds from Magnetti Marelli was clear to where their relations with the Toyota F1 Team was growing. The team in 2004 operated with its highest budget ever of 336.2 usd million and this resulted to another record breaker seeing the team dominate the 2004 season with Michael Schumacher winning the first five races and ending the year with 13 wins which is almost unthinkable and becoming a 7 time world champion. Rubens Barrichello also won 2 races giving the Ferrari team 15 wins reminding everyone of the 2002 season being the Ferrari domination. Ferrari sponsors received an incredible amount of exposure giving them their maximum returns thanks to the team's success.

The Scuderia celebrating the 2004 Championships

January 19, 2005, being, very early in the year, Montezemolo signed on as the first team to leave the GWPC and enter the Formula One circle with the Concorde agreement from 2008 to 2012. This move was seen as a sell out move by Ferrari against the other teams but it was really a survival tool which led the rest of the F1 teams gang up on the Scuderia throughout every political structure possible causing various friction. New deals with Shell and Vodafone continued to show stability in the team's sponsorship run. The 2005 season had the word cost cutting written all over it with the other formula of selling everything from Engine parts to racing front wings, once, seen as something illegal to sell by the team against their employees. The currency exchange problem continued in 2005 with the US dollar showing no signs of upper movement. Thanks to their winning ways, the team received their usual 22.5 usd million as the television revenue prize and 8 usd million as a Formula One Management gratuity. The team was operating on high expenses paying top dollars to their employee's preventing them from moving to some attractive offers from the competition leaving the team with not much of a choice but to at least match them and increase the expense reports. The 2005 season was operated on a 307.9 usd million budget in line with the sport's demand in cost cutting. Gone from the sponsor front was Fila, replaced by Puma as a new breath fresh in commercial wear. Fila went through an over production process of Ferrari merchandise, mainly during the 2002-03 season leaving most of their items left sold at liquidation prices during the 2004 season. Puma geared up to continue to grow within the sport.

Ferrari welcoming Puma in the family

The introduction of Tata was important to the team since Fiat was looking carefully at the Indian market for various projects but India's first ever formula one driver, Narain Karthikeyan, took most of its sponsorship to the Midland F1 Jordan team. Ferrari was going through tonnes of changes, from the Maserati brand being transferred to Alfa Romeo to relieve the Ferrari brand from losing more money and Mediobanca, in agreement with Fiat, reached out for an agreement with Mubadala Development Company PJSC, an investment company owned by the Government of Abu Dhabi, to sell 5% of Ferrari share capital for a total consideration of   114 million euro with still some talks of a Ferrari stock floatation possible within the next two coming years pointing at the year of 2007. Also, a new crisis was on its way since the health worldwide smoking ban came into effect creating whispers of the team losing Philip Morris (Marlboro), their biggest sponsor, but that also proved to be wrong since the Philip Morris company signed a long extension with a new master plan up its sleeves ready to offer the team an approximate 200 usd million per year to the Scuderia likely being the largest deal ever for the team.

Marlboro will be more present then ever

The regulations in 2005 as per the previous years were aimed to stop the team from winning and that is exactly what it has done limiting the team to one victory in a controversial race being classified as a complete disaster when comparing this to the previous 5 years. The team's television exposure dipped to a distant third and their sponsors suffered in the process on a marketing point of view.

Regardless of how big the challenge, Michael Schumacher and Ferrari are ready to fight (Source: Vodafone)

With no signs of the US dollar increasing in the short term, and, having fallen from 1st supremacy on the track, the Ferrari Formula One team is in a tough position at the moment, and, for the first time in this decade, left with a challenge to come back on top, on and off the track.

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By Carm Sciglitano - Tifosi Club