By Madeline Coleman, The Athletic, The New York Times
June 9, 2026- Attorneys general from 19 states and jurisdictions in the United States voiced concerns to Formula One and the FIA over tobacco industry sponsorship in the sport.
The criticism was detailed in a letter to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali and the sport’s regulator president Mohammed Ben Sulayem on Monday.
McLaren and Ferrari were CC’ed at the bottom of the letter, as both teams have tobacco-related sponsors. Zyn, producers of a nicotine pouch, is a partner of Ferrari, while McLaren is partners with British American Tobacco, which owns the nicotine pouch company Velo. The Velo logo is on the sidepod of McLaren’s current car.
These types of partnerships aren’t new to the F1 world. Tobacco companies held a significant presence in the sport, pouring millions of dollars into different teams and levels. One of the most iconic was Marlboro and Ferrari. Traditional cigarette advertising was officially banned in F1 from the end of the 2006 season.
These attorneys general are calling for the “existing policy prohibiting cigarette sponsorships” to be expanded and also “prohibit sponsorship involving all tobacco and nicotine products, including nicotine pouches, and to terminate all current sponsorships involving these products.”
The 19 attorneys general who penned the recent letter represent Hawaii, Vermont, Arizona, California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Puerto Rico, Virginia and Washington.
The Athletic has contacted the FIA for comment. An F1 spokesperson said: “Formula 1 adheres to all applicable laws in our race markets.”
All 50 states, as well as the District of Columbia and other territories/federal districts, have their own attorneys general, and there is a single federal attorney general, which is the head of the Department of Justice. State-level attorneys general are the chief legal officers, and they handle legal matters that affect their respective states.
In 1998, the attorneys general of 46 states and the four major U.S. tobacco companies reached a legal agreement known as the Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement (MSA). It settled the lawsuits that focused on recovering “billions of dollars in health care costs associated with treating smoking-related illnesses,” per the June 2026 letter to F1 and the FIA, and MSA “banned tobacco advertising targeting youth, specifically limiting sponsorship of auto racing events.”
Public health entities have called on F1 about this matter before, but these partnerships are still allowed and so Ferrari and McLaren are still permitted to partner with Zyn and Velo respectively.
Both manufacturers have been approached by The Athletic for comment on the letter in which they are CC’ed.
The 19 AGs pointed out in their letter that, according to research outlined by the Centers for Disease Control, there is scientific evidence that tobacco advertising and promotion does influence younger individuals to start using tobacco products.
The attorneys general highlighted in their letter to the FIA and F1 that the sport’s youth audience has been rapidly growing in recent years, and that there are numerous “youth-focused cross-sponsorships” promoted in F1, like Legos, Mattel Hot Wheels, and Hello Kitty in F1 Academy.
“As Attorneys General, we take seriously our responsibility to protect American families, who have been free of most tobacco advertising for decades, thanks in large part to the MSA and television broadcast laws restricting cigarette advertising,” they wrote. “We therefore urge FIA and Formula 1 to do their part to safeguard youth by terminating all current tobacco and nicotine product sponsorships immediately and expanding existing policies prohibiting cigarette sponsorships to include sponsorship by newer tobacco products, such as nicotine pouches. Formula 1 fans, especially the youngest viewers, deserve to enjoy race day without being targeted by the tobacco industry.”
An earlier version of this article misstated the year traditional cigarette advertising was banned in F1. The year was 2006, not 2026.
