Philip Morris, owner of the Marlboro tobacco brand, have extended their contract with Ferrari until 2011. This comes in spite of the European Union’s ban on tobacco advertising in sport that began last month. Ferrari are expected to run with so-called ‘subliminal’ branding although it is unclear whether the European Union may attempt to prosecute them for it. The Marlboro brand has been synonymous with F1 and many other forms of motorsport since the 1970s.
Renault’s title sponsor Mild Seven are expected to be replaced by telecommunications firm Telefonica in 2006, while McLaren’s replacement for West is rumoured to be either British Telecom or computer chip manufacturer Intel.
