All ten incumbent Formula 1 teams and the incoming Cadillac squad have signed multi-year extensions to continue sponsoring liveries and drivers in F1 Academy, the all-female feeder series now entering its third season. The deals run through at least 2027, according to sources familiar with the contracts. Each team will maintain its existing driver and livery commitment, meaning 11 branded cars on the grid once Cadillac joins for the 2026 season.
The renewal arrives three months before the 2025 calendar begins in Jeddah in March, and two weeks after F1 Academy announced a separate partnership with Unilever's Dirt Is Good laundry brand. The timing is not coincidental. Team sponsors want clarity on branding exposure before fiscal 2026 budget allocations close in January. Cadillac's inclusion signals GM's intent to use F1 Academy as a talent funnel, not just a PR exercise—the automaker is staffing a technical academy in Charlotte and needs a visible junior program to justify the spending to Detroit.
What matters here is the formalization of the ladder. F1 Academy launched in 2023 as a soft pilot with inconsistent team buy-in. The 2024 season introduced mandatory team sponsorships, but those were single-year commitments with exit clauses. This round removes the clauses. Teams are now contractually obligated to field Academy drivers in their liveries through the end of the decade, which means sponsors evaluating women's sports exposure can underwrite multi-year activation deals with confidence. It also means the series can negotiate longer broadcast windows—Sky Sports and ESPN currently hold rights through 2025, and renewal talks are expected to begin in Q1 2026.
The economic model is unusual. F1 teams do not pay cash to F1 Academy; they provide branding, hospitality access, and technical mentorship. The value flows the other way: teams receive brand exposure in a growing women's sports category without the cost of running an actual junior team. The Academy itself is funded by Formula 1 Management, which has committed $25 million over five years, and by sponsors like Unilever, whose Dirt Is Good deal is rumored to be worth mid-seven figures annually. The model works because it converts F1's existing marketing budget into talent development optics.
What to watch: which teams actually promote Academy drivers into their simulator or reserve roles. Mercedes and Ferrari have moved graduates into development programs; others have not. The next calendar announcement is due in January, with rumors of a U.S. round in Miami during the Grand Prix weekend. Cadillac's first livery will debut at the season opener in Jeddah, and the team is expected to announce its Academy driver in December. Unilever's activation budget for 2025 is still being finalized, but a person familiar with the deal said it includes trackside branding and a digital content series.
The extension also locks in exposure for the 2026 F1 season, when Cadillac joins the grid and the sport's U.S. media rights come up for renewal. ESPN's current deal expires after 2025, and Liberty Media is seeking a $75-100 million annual increase. A formalized women's ladder strengthens the pitch to advertisers skeptical of motorsport's demographic reach. The Academy now has 22 alumni, none of whom have reached F1, but three are in simulator roles and one is testing in Formula E. The pipeline is slow, but it is no longer speculative.