The marketing model of Formula One has not changed a great deal since 1968, when the Lotus team committed the then subversive act of putting a sponsor’s logo and branding on its car. It was the tobacco brand Gold Leaf and the livery of the car was completely given over to the brand. The rest of the teams quickly followed.

Forty years later, “stickers on cars” is still the model by which sponsors get their brands in front of the cameras. Most F1 teams derive about half of their income from sponsorship and many juggle the opposing needs of diverse sponsors, with each part of the car having a rate card.