Saudi Arabia adds F1 team to sport investments alongside Newcastle United and LIV Golf with Aston Martin deal

Saudi Arabia’s public investment fund (PIF) has expanded its sports investment portfolio by purchasing a stake in the Aston Martin brand, including the Formula 1 team it runs under the same name.

A 17 percent share in the parent Aston Martin business has been sold to the PIF, making it the second largest shareholder in the business after Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll. Aston Martin has performed poorly financially in recent years, running up debts just shy of £1bn, and its F1 team is among the slowest on the F1 grid this year.

Stroll made his own investment into Aston Martin 2020, later re-branding the Racing Point F1 team he purchased in the summer of 2018. Stroll’s son Lance is employed as one of the team’s two drivers, alongside four-time world champion and climate change activist Sebastian Vettel.

‘Overall, this is a game changing event for Aston Martin, supporting the delivery of our strategic plans and accelerating our long-term growth potential,’ Stroll said.

‘It transforms our balance sheet, liquidity and cashflow profile and provides greater clarity on our pathway to become sustainably free cash flow positive and create significant shareholder value.’

Saudi oil giant Aramco, also owned by the PIF, has been title sponsor of the Aston martin team since the beginning of the season. The deal with the squad is not the PIF’s first investment in F1, though, with the fund already the third biggest shareholder in McLaren since July last year. The gulf nations has held two F1 races since it joined the calendar at the end of 2021, and pays a £50m hosting fee to F1 for each event.

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