Ferrari has found another taker for the branding space on its Formula 1 cars, announcing a multi-year global partnership with Japanese technology company Rakuten that will begin on January 1, 2027.

The deal makes Rakuten a team partner in the telecommunications and e-commerce categories, with its logo set to appear on Ferrari's cars, driver kit and across the team's working environment. Rakuten's business spans online retail, financial services and mobile communications, and the agreement will also draw in Rakuten Symphony, the company's telecommunications technology arm.

Rakuten chairman and CEO Mickey Mikitani framed the tie-up as a chance to showcase his company's offerings to a global audience. He said Formula 1 gives Rakuten a dynamic stage to bring its technology capabilities, digital ecosystem and membership experiences directly to millions of Ferrari and F1 fans worldwide.

Ferrari's chief racing revenue officer, Lorenzo Giorgetti, said the partnership had potential to extend well past the racetrack. He described Rakuten's digital ecosystem as exceptional and said its technological capabilities could open new ways for Ferrari to generate value beyond racing itself.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed by either party, meaning attention will instead turn to a more visible detail: how prominently, and where, Rakuten's branding lands on Ferrari's car when the team unveils its 2027 challenger.

The partnership sits apart from Ferrari's existing title arrangement with HP and marks a further expansion of the Scuderia's commercial lineup. It also reflects a broader trend in Formula 1, where technology firms continue to see the sport as a valuable route to reach an international fanbase.

For now, the collaboration remains largely conceptual, built around promises of digital ecosystems and membership experiences that will only become tangible once Ferrari's 2027 car is revealed. That launch will serve as the first real test of how the partnership translates into something visible — namely, how Rakuten's branding is worked into the bodywork alongside Ferrari's other partners.

Until then, both companies are framing the deal in broad strategic terms rather than concrete numbers, with Mikitani pointing to global reach and Giorgetti emphasizing new value creation. The actual scale of the partnership, financially and visually, will not become clear until Ferrari's next car hits the track.

Source: grandprix.com

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