Gucci to become Alpine's title partner in Formula 1 from 2027
From the 2027 season, Gucci will become the title partner of the Alpine Formula 1 team, Formula 1 announced on May 27, 2026, confirming one of the most striking commercial changes in the recent history of the championship. From the start of the next season, the team will compete under the name Gucci Racing Alpine Formula One Team, and the Italian luxury fashion house will also enter the visual identity of the car. According to Formula 1's official announcement, Alpine will leave its current blue-and-pink color scheme and compete in Gucci colors from 2027. This means the partnership is not limited only to displaying a logo on the car, but represents a broader attempt to connect the sporting, commercial and cultural reach of Formula 1.
According to the same announcement, as part of the collaboration Gucci is launching the Gucci Racing platform, described as a new business and experiential project built around the values of performance, precision, discipline and excellence at the intersection of luxury and sport. In Formula 1, such a move carries particular weight because a team's title partner usually becomes part of the official name, communication identity, equipment and global presence of the team. For Alpine, which is in the ownership orbit of the Renault Group, the agreement comes at a moment when the team is trying to confirm a sporting recovery after a very difficult 2025. Formula 1 states that Alpine progressed to fifth place in the constructors' standings in the 2026 season after finishing the previous year at the bottom.
A new phase for the team from Enstone
Alpine has been present in Formula 1 under its current name since 2021, when Renault's factory project was renamed Alpine, a brand that within the Renault Group is associated with sports cars and racing tradition. Formula 1's official profile recalls that this is the successor to Renault's return to the championship that began in 2016 with the takeover of the then Lotus team. Although Alpine has already achieved a race victory and occasional podiums under the new name, recent seasons have been marked by frequent organizational changes, leadership changes and fluctuating form on the track. In that context, Gucci's arrival also represents a commercial message that the team wants to take advantage of the new interest in Formula 1 and the broader audience the sport has attracted in recent years.
It is especially important that the partnership is being announced for 2027, after a season in which Alpine is already adapting to a new technical era. Formula 1 reported in January 2026 that the team had presented the A526 car and entered the new season with a Mercedes power unit, following an earlier decision to leave Renault's Formula 1 power-unit program. The same announcement stated that Pierre Gasly and Franco Colapinto remained the team's driver line-up, while executive adviser Flavio Briatore and managing director Steve Nielsen were highlighted in the leadership. For Alpine, this was a major technical and organizational turning point, and Gucci's entry from 2027 adds a strong market dimension to it.
Gucci Racing as a fusion of luxury, sport and a global audience
Francesca Bellettini, Gucci's president and chief executive officer, said in Formula 1's official announcement that the partnership with Alpine Formula One Team opens a new chapter because Gucci is becoming the first luxury fashion house to serve as a title partner in Formula 1. According to her, Formula 1 today represents a unique combination of performance, culture and global reach, and Alpine is the partner through which Gucci wants to realize that vision. Bellettini added that Gucci Racing is not just a presence on the starting grid, but an expression of the direction in which the brand wants to go. Such wording shows that the collaboration is planned as a broader platform, not just as a classic sponsorship agreement.
Flavio Briatore, Alpine's executive adviser, said in the same announcement that he was proud that a brand of Gucci's caliber was entering Formula 1 as the title partner of Alpine Formula One Team. Briatore emphasized that the team from Enstone has a history of taking a different approach from the competition and that it has already shown how fashion can have a place in Formula 1. His statement carries additional weight because of his connection with teams that in the past made prominent use of a recognizable commercial identity, including the Benetton period in Formula 1. According to Briatore, the improvement in form on the track and the best start to a season in Alpine's history are creating momentum that the new partnership further strengthens.
The end of the BWT period and a change of colors
Gucci's arrival also means the end of the current identity in which Alpine is recognizable by its combination of blue and pink. In its official announcement about the new partnership, Formula 1 stated that the team will compete in Gucci colors from 2027, marking a departure from the current look of the car. F1i.com, a specialist Formula 1 portal, reported that the move will conclude a five-year period in which BWT was the team's title sponsor. The same source states that the value of the multi-year agreement with Gucci is unofficially estimated at 55 to 60 million US dollars per year, but that financial amount was not stated in Formula 1's official announcement.
For that reason, the value of the contract should be viewed as a media report, not as officially confirmed information. In Formula 1, commercial agreements are often not published in full, especially when it comes to duration, bonuses, marketing rights and related activations outside the track itself. Still, the very fact that Gucci is entering the title position has market importance because the title partner occupies the most visible sponsorship space in the public identity of the team. For Alpine this means potentially stronger global reach, and for Gucci a direct entry into one of the most watched sporting competitions in the world.
Why Formula 1 is attractive to luxury brands
In recent years, Formula 1 has increasingly positioned itself as a global entertainment-and-sport platform, not only as a technical competition of constructors and drivers. In the official announcement about Formula 1 partners, a wide range of global brands is visible, from airlines and technology companies to luxury and lifestyle partners. The sport is expanding through races in key markets, digital content, series, social networks and events outside the race weekend itself. For fashion and luxury houses, this opens space to connect with an audience that follows sport, travel, technology, design and celebrity culture.
Gucci is entering Formula 1 at a time when the luxury industry is looking for new ways to strengthen brand relevance. Kering, the French group whose portfolio includes Gucci, states on its official website that it brings together a number of luxury houses, including Gucci, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Balenciaga, Brioni and other brands. According to Kering's press release on its 2025 results, the group entered 2026 with a plan to be more efficient, faster and more focused on strengthening brand positioning, sales, margins and long-term value creation. In that business framework, the collaboration with Formula 1 can also be read as part of a broader effort to bind Gucci more strongly to globally relevant cultural and sporting platforms.
Alpine seeks stability after a difficult 2025
Formula 1's official profile states that Alpine finished 2025 in last place in the constructors' standings with 22 points, with Pierre Gasly scoring all the team's points. When presenting the A526 car in January 2026, Formula 1 emphasized that the team had redirected development early toward the new car and new rules, along with a major change of power unit. Such a decision meant that 2025 was partly sacrificed in order to create a better foundation for 2026 and the new technical generation. According to Formula 1's announcement of May 27, 2026, that turnaround is already visible in the results because Alpine currently occupies fifth place in the constructors' championship.
Gucci's commercial arrival therefore is not happening in a vacuum. In Formula 1, sporting results and market appeal are strongly connected: better results mean more television time, greater sponsor visibility and a more convincing story for new partners. Alpine already received a significant financial injection in 2023 when, according to a Formula 1 announcement, a group of investors consisting of Otro Capital, RedBird Capital Partners and Maximum Effort Investments acquired a 24 percent stake in the F1 team, with an investment of 200 million euros and a team valuation of around 900 million euros. Gucci's investment through the title partnership continues the same broader trend of strengthening the commercial value of the team.
A broader signal for Formula 1's commercial direction
Gucci's entry into the title role at Alpine may also be a signal to other luxury, fashion and lifestyle brands that Formula 1 is increasingly being seen as a space beyond traditional automotive and technology sponsorship. In the past, teams most often carried names or visual identities linked to tobacco, drinks, banks, technology, energy or automotive partners. Over time, advertising rules and market habits changed, and sponsorship portfolios became broader. Today's title partners are not only buying space on the bodywork of the car, but access to global content, hospitality, social networks, product collaborations and customer experiences.
That is precisely why the Gucci Racing name is especially important. According to Formula 1's official announcement, it is a platform that will be built around the values of performance and luxury, leaving room for products, events, exclusive experiences and communication campaigns connected with races. It has not been officially confirmed what specific collections, activations or market projects will arise from that platform. But the announcement alone already shows that the collaboration will be broader than a standard sponsorship agreement. For Formula 1, this confirms that its paddock increasingly functions as a global stage on which sport, entertainment, design and luxury come together.
What changes from 2027
The most visible change will be the official team name, which according to Formula 1's announcement will be Gucci Racing Alpine Formula One Team. The second major change will be the look of the car and equipment, because Alpine is moving from its current blue-and-pink combination to Gucci colors. The third change concerns the communication identity: Gucci Racing will be the new brand within the collaboration, and its reach will probably develop through race weekends, promotional activities and digital channels. The sporting part of the story remains dependent on whether Alpine can continue the progress from 2026 and establish itself as a stable midfield team or a candidate for bigger results.
For Gucci, this is an entry into a competition held on several continents and attracting an audience far broader than traditional automotive enthusiasts. For Alpine, it is an opportunity to support its sporting recovery with a recognizable global partner and a new identity that will clearly differ from the rest of the grid. According to the available information, the partnership begins from the 2027 season, while details about the complete visual identity, activations of the Gucci Racing platform and any additional commercial projects will be announced later. Until then, Alpine continues the 2026 season under its current name and colors, but with a confirmed major change that will lead it into a different commercial phase from next year.
Sources: - Formula 1 – official announcement that Gucci will become the title partner of Alpine Formula One Team from 2027 and that the team will take the name Gucci Racing Alpine Formula One Team (link) - Formula 1 – official Alpine team profile with context on the history, results and changes in the team (link) - Formula 1 – announcement about the unveiling of the Alpine A526 car for the 2026 season, the driver line-up and the switch to a Mercedes power unit (link) - Formula 1 – announcement about a 200 million euro investment in Alpine's F1 team and the team's valuation from 2023 (link) - Kering – official description of the group and its portfolio of luxury houses, including Gucci (link) - Kering – press release on the financial results for 2025 and the group's business priorities for 2026 (link) - F1i.com – report on the partnership between Gucci and Alpine and the unofficial estimate of the annual value of the agreement (link)