British American Tobacco and Formula One motor racing

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Abstract
Sponsorship of sport has become central to the marketing operations of transnational tobacco companies as more direct forms of tobacco advertising have been curtailed by regulation.1–4 Tobacco sponsorship of motor sports remains an efficient way to reach boys2 and young men.3 The influence of tobacco companies has contributed to races increasingly being held in emerging markets throughout Asia that have minimal regulation or negotiated exemptions; races in more regulated countries such as Austria, Belgium, and Canada have been threatened or withdrawn.w1-3 In 1999, a new development emerged, when British American Tobacco (BAT) established its own Formula One racing team, British American Racing. Sponsorship of Formula One motor racing by tobacco companies is thus a powerful challenge to public health legislation aimed at reducing smoking.5