This year's Formula 1 season kicked off in March in Melbourne, Australia, and almost every team featured sponsors from the crypto industry. The presence of digital asset brands in this highly prestigious racing event demonstrates crypto's rising influence in motorsport. Support from crypto exchanges, blockchain companies, and digital tokens strengthens the connection between DeFi, modern fintech, and the high-speed sport.
2025 is a monumental year for crypto sponsorship
In 2025, crypto funds are flooding into car racing and sports in general. Tether's buy-in with Juventus is positioned as the biggest deal of the year, valued at an estimated $100 million. Tether owns just over a tenth of the club's shares after the most recent acquisition and holds around 6.18% of the voting rights. The partnership will fuse AI, blockchain, and sports.
F1 and other car racing events have long been a platform for the crypto industry's biggest names and many of its rising stars. Crypto.com, one of the largest crypto exchanges, partners with Formula One Group. Leading exchange Gate.io replaced Bybit as Red Bull Racing's 2025 season sponsor after Bybit suffered a monumental hack. Gate.io's logo is displayed on the team's suits, cars, and Max Verstappen's helmet. Cash App, which Square owns, sponsors Red Bull's sister team Racing Bull. It handles crypto payments amounting to billions annually.
Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange, inked a deal with Aston Martin. It was also the first transaction in history using only USD Coin. OKX continues its sponsorship of the 2024 champions, McLaren, this year. The exchange has invested hundreds of millions in a five-year deal with the British team, signed in 2022. It's one of the team's three main sponsors, along with Mastercard and Google. Binance and ApeCoin are the official sponsors of the F1 team BWT Alpine.
Aliyyah Koloc and Raphael Coin
Dynamically growing crypto exchange Gleec's advanced blockchain infrastructure was used to launch Raphael Coin (RAPH), which recently announced professional race car driver Aliyyah Koloc as its official ambassador. Koloc is as well-known for her sports achievements as for her philanthropic initiatives, and her efforts will amplify Raphael Coin's mission of using blockchain tech to preserve cultural heritage.
RAPH offers fractional ownership in Recto: Study for the Battle of the Milvian Bridge, a Renaissance masterpiece by the artist Raphael (Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino in Italian). Gleec's blockchain infrastructure provides secure, transparent access to the cultural and financial value of this historically significant artwork. By democratizing access through fractional ownership, RAPH crafts a unique approach for public participation in cultural history.
Koloc will debut a Raphael-branded racecar with the Raphael.art logo in the Taklimakan Rally in China, one of the world's largest and most challenging off-road motorsport events, which is taking place from May 20 to June 2. She will spotlight the project to her substantial fan base and a global audience.
A partnership with an F1 team is more than a status symbol
Partnering with F1 teams and high-profile racers has traditionally lent crypto companies status. FTX entered a partnership with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula One Team back in September 2021, a deal that included branding on the team's cars and uniforms, among other initiatives. Bitcoin's price surged to $68,789, its highest value at the time, just two months later. Both parties planned for the partnership to continue for multiple seasons, but FTX's logo was removed from cars and race shirts when the exchange collapsed.
Another sponsor will be waiting to take the place of every crypto platform whose name gets wiped off an arena. Why? History repeats itself. In the early 2000s, telecoms adopted the practice of building brand awareness quickly to grow their client base before competitors. Early entrants had more opportunity to take advantage of customer engagement.
Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and other leading US companies had allocated over $415 million to sponsorships by 2013. The most lavish spender, AT&T, invested over $165 million in sponsorships, with almost two-thirds of that amount directed at sports. Beyond brand promotion, these initiatives facilitated direct customer engagement via mobile phone subscription sales on location.
First movers project leadership and confidence, create familiarity, and set a standard to emulate. On the surface, these deals generate awareness and product adoption, but they also have less obvious objectives, such as boosting market value and influencing decision-makers. Big sponsorships fuel the top of crypto platforms' marketing funnels. This approach makes potential clients likelier to organically search for a brand when looking to trade or invest in digital assets.
The biggest player
Crypto.com is the biggest player by far. The exchange paid $700 million for the naming rights of the former Staples Center to carry the name Crypto.com Arena for two decades. It has struck deals with the Italian GP, Paris Saint-Germain FC, Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings (NHL), Aston Martin Cognizant F1 Team, FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022, Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), UFC, Angel City FC (NWSL), etc. It also signed a nine-year deal for the Miami Grand Prix title sponsorship in 2022.
A lucrative and sustainable integration
There is another, perhaps more central reason for crypto exchanges' interest in sponsoring sports teams. Sports bettors watch these broadcasts all the time, and there is an overlap between this audience and crypto fans in terms of behaviors, attitudes, and demographics. Crypto and car racing, in particular, are locked in a fast-growing trajectory in 2025, with blockchain tech creating new possibilities for interaction and sponsorship. From tracks to stadiums, the crossover promises revolutionary fan experiences. Friendlier regulatory environments and blockchain platforms' rising influence ensure this integration will remain lucrative and sustainable.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
