Formula 1, the Marketing That PaysNarrow moat
Ferrari (RACE) — moat facet
Every other carmaker's motorsport programme is a cost line. Ferrari's is a revenue line.
The most valuable marketing asset in the automotive industry is one that makes money.
Since the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship in 1950, Scuderia Ferrari has claimed 16 Constructors' and 15 Drivers' world titles — the most successful team in the sport's history — and receives a share of the sport's commercial revenues that reflects that standing.1 Sponsorship of the team, plus that commercial share, plus the endurance programme, sits inside the €820 million sponsorship, commercial and brand line that grew 22.4% in 2025.2
Set that against how the rest of the industry markets itself. A carmaker buys advertising; Ferrari is paid to appear. The racing programme is a cost centre that generates revenue, in front of a global audience, under the company's own name, every fortnight for nine months of the year.
It also has a second-order commercial effect that is easy to miss: it supplies the engineering credibility that justifies the price of the road cars, and the scarcity narrative that supports the queue. The road-car business is downstream of the racing one in every sense.
The exposure is that motorsport popularity is not guaranteed and Ferrari's own risk factors name it — the performance of racing activities and the popularity of motor sports more broadly.3 A decade of poor results has historically cost Ferrari nothing commercially, which is itself evidence about what clients are buying.
Watch the sponsorship line, not the championship table.
Racing revenue rose in the June 2026 quarter on sponsorship and on renting engines to rival teams, and the commercial line has compounded well ahead of the cars for two years.
Racing is marketing that also earns money, including engines rented to rival teams. This line growing shows the racing operation paying more of its own way.
Source: Ferrari Q2 2026 results ↗- ReportedSince the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship in 1950, Scuderia Ferrari has claimed 16 Constructors' and 15 Drivers' world titles — the most successful team in the sport's history — and receives a share of the sport's commercial revenues that reflects that standing. Sponsorship of the team, plus that commercial share, plus the endurance programme, sits inside the €820 million sponsorship, co...Ferrari N.V., Form 20-F for the year ended 31 December 2025 (SEC, CIK 1648416) — Item 4, Information on the Company. Ferrari sells in over 60 markets worldwide through a network of 181 authorized dealers operating 195 points of sale as of the end of 2025; the largest dealer accounted for approximately 3.0% of shipments and the fifteen largest for approximately 25%. Allocations are determined by geography and dealer on metrics including expected developments in the relevant market, the number of cars sold historically by the various dealers, dealers current order books and the average waiting time of the end client in the relevant market; an order reporting system collects and monitors end-client orders and assists in production planning, allocation and dealer management. Ferrari rewards loyal clients through driving events and other initiatives and, most importantly, offers its most loyal and active clients preferential access to its newest, most exclusive and highest value cars. It states that resilience of the car value after a period of ownership is an important competitive dimension because higher resilience decreases the total cost of ownership and promotes repeat purchases, which it believes is a strong competitive advantage. The company intends to continue pursuing its controlled volume and growth strategy in line with the business plan announced at its October 2025 Capital Markets Day and plans to launch an average of four new models per year over 2026 to 2030. Six new models were launched in 2025 — the 296 Speciale, 296 Speciale A, Amalfi, 849 Testarossa, 849 Testarossa Spider and the Ferrari Luce, its first full electric model. The first reveal phase of the Ferrari Luce took place in October 2025 with the presentation of its key technical components and product development strategy, followed in February 2026 by the unveiling of the interior design and the announcement of the model name; the current product portfolio includes cars presented in 2025 for which shipments will commence in future years. The portfolio comprises nine Range models, four Special Series models and one Supercar, the F80. Scuderia Ferrari is described as the most successful team in the sport history, having claimed 16 Constructors and 15 Drivers world titles since the inaugural World Championship in 1950, and Ferrari won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Personalization runs from the Atelier through the Tailor Made program, whose dedicated designers guide clients through exclusive materials, and the One-Off program; existing Tailor Made centers are in Maranello, New York and Shanghai, with new centers announced for Tokyo and Los Angeles by 2027. All production takes place in Maranello, Italy, where the e-Building, inaugurated in 2024, is used to produce and develop models with internal combustion, hybrid and full electric powertrains as well as strategic electrical components including high-voltage battery packs, e-axles, inverters and electric engines; construction of a new paint shop began in 2024, which will allow Ferrari to satisfy further personalizations in-house. The company had 5,718 employees. — FY2025 · publ. 2026-02 · source ↗
- Moat Explorer calcSponsorship of the team, plus that commercial share, plus the endurance programme, sits inside the €820 million sponsorship, commercial and brand line that grew 22.4% in 2025. Set that against how the rest of the industry markets itself.Ferrari N.V., Form 20-F FY2025 — Item 5, Operating and Financial Review. Total shipments of 13,640 cars against 13,752 in 2024 and 13,663 in 2023; shipment figures exclude strictly limited racing cars such as those in the XX Programme and the 499P Modificata, as well as one-off, pre-owned and other special sales. Net revenues of EUR7,146M, up 7.0%. Net revenues from cars and spare parts were EUR6,005M, an increase of EUR277M or 4.8% on EUR5,728M in 2024 and EUR5,119M in 2023, attributed primarily to a richer product and country mix as well as a higher contribution from personalization, more than offsetting the lower contribution from the Daytona SP3 whose limited series deliveries concluded in the third quarter of 2025; foreign currency effects including hedging were negative. Sponsorship, commercial and brand revenues were EUR820M, up 22.4% from EUR670M and EUR572M in the two prior years, comprising sponsorship of Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari share of the Formula 1 World Championship commercial revenues distributed to teams, and lifestyle, merchandising, licensing and royalty income; other net revenues were EUR321M, up EUR42M. Selling, general and administrative costs were EUR642M in 2025, an increase of EUR81M or 14.5% on EUR561M, and 9.0% of net revenues against 8.4%, attributed primarily to racing expenses and brand investments as well as organizational development. Net revenues by year run EUR3,105M (2016), EUR3,417M, EUR3,420M, EUR3,766M, EUR3,460M (2020), EUR4,271M, EUR5,095M, EUR5,970M, EUR6,677M and EUR7,146M (2025). — FY2025 · publ. 2026-02 · source ↗
- ReportedThe exposure is that motorsport popularity is not guaranteed and Ferrari's own risk factors name it — the performance of racing activities and the popularity of motor sports more broadly. A decade of poor results has historically cost Ferrari nothing commercially, which is itself evidence about what clients are buying.Ferrari N.V., Form 20-F FY2025 — Item 3.D, Risk Factors. The filing states that its focus on maintaining exclusivity limits its potential sales growth and profits. It warns that increasing production relative to the number of collectors may adversely affect the value of its cars as collectible items and their value in the secondary market, and that the resilience of the value of its cars after a period of ownership promotes repeat purchases. On personalisation, it warns that a higher level of personalization content may also adversely affect residual value, because personalized content generally depreciates substantially with change of ownership. On electrification, it states that electric technology is a core component of its strategy and that if the introduction of such technology proves too costly or is unsuccessful in the market its results of operations could be materially adversely affected, and that other manufacturers of luxury sports cars may be more successful at implementing it; it also warns that the shift to hybrid and electric models may adversely affect residual values if secondary sales occur at wider discounts than for combustion cars. Additional risk factors address dependence on a single production site in Maranello, the performance of independent dealers, and the risk that the interests of its largest shareholders may differ from those of other shareholders. Among the named risks and uncertainties are the success of its racing activities, and the sponsorship and commercial revenues and expenses of its racing activities as well as the popularity of motor sports more broadly. The filing states that revenues from sponsorship, commercial and brand activities are influenced by the strength and appeal of the brand, the historical success and current performance of its racing teams through Scuderia Ferrari in the FIA Formula 1 World Championship and the Ferrari Endurance Team in the World Endurance Championship, and the overall popularity of Formula 1 and other racing competitions. — FY2025 · publ. 2026-02 · source ↗