Just a few days before the start of the 2024 season, Red Bull have lost two major sponsors that have a combined valuation of $144 billion. Cash App and PokerStars withdrew their sponsorship from the Austrian team after a fairly long partnership together. This raised multiple eyebrows as their departure arrived amid the team’s ferocious dominance in Formula 1.
Apart from these two companies, the Milton Keynes outfit also lost the support of other major companies such as Walmart and HP. That’s not it as the list also included AlphaTauri, Ocean Bottle, and BMC, as per Decalspotters. However, despite Cash App’s departure from Red Bull, they will continue to sponsor VCARB (formerly AlphaTauri).
The mobile payment service company also have their brand name included in the name of the F1 team, which is Visa Cash App RB. Meanwhile, Visa, the principal sponsor of the Faenza-based team, also joined the Austrian team as a notable sponsor.
As Walmart left Red Bull, they decided to join forces with McLaren instead. Rob Walton, an American businessman, picked McLaren over the defending champions despite the latter’s dominance in recent times. Although McLaren have not achieved the kind of success Red Bull have in recent times, they yet do have the most sponsors.
The timing of the departure of the Milton Keynes-based outfit’s sponsors is interesting as the team is currently going through turmoil. Christian Horner, the Red Bull team principal, is currently under investigation for “inappropriate behavior” towards a female co-worker.
Did Red Bull’s sponsors cut ties with the team because of the controversy surrounding Horner?
The investigation surrounding Christian Horner has troubled Red Bull immensely recently. Firstly, they have faced immense reputational damage that took years to build.
Secondly, the team is in huge trouble because F1, which is run by the American company Liberty Media, wants the Austrian side’s parent company to conclude their investigation soon. The controversy involving Horner also grabbed Ford’s attention.
The American automobile company, who are getting ready to enter Formula 1 with Red Bull in 2026, have also asked the team to conclude their investigation at the earliest. Since sponsors seemed concerned about Red Bull GmbH’s ongoing investigation, it seems that the controversy surrounding Horner has in fact impacted the team’s endorsements dearly.
