More than 40 years after the last official race at the Jarama circuit in 1981, Madrid returns to the world calendar in grand style. Banco Santander also makes its debut as the official global sponsor of Formula 1 from 2025. Before this, there have been 20 years of sponsorships of teams and drivers. The world’s top motorsport competition returns to the Spanish capital with the Formula 1 Tag Heuer Spanish Grand Prix. The event will be held from September 11 to 13 at MADRING, an innovative semi-urban circuit designed around IFEMA Madrid and Valdebebas.
The Formula 1 Tag Heuer Spanish Grand Prix will be held from September 11 to 13 at MADRING, an innovative semi-urban circuit designed around IFEMA Madrid and Valdebebas
From now on, Spain will have absolute relevance in the world championship with a historic double event: the Montmeló race (Barcelona-Catalonia Grand Prix) and the debut of Madrid (Spanish Grand Prix). Since 1991, the race has been held uninterruptedly at the Barcelona circuit, which will alternate on the calendar every two years after this season.
Spain will have absolute relevance in the world championship with a historic double event: the Montmeló race (Barcelona-Catalonia Grand Prix) and the debut of Madrid (Spanish Grand Prix)
Formula 1 is not just a sport; it is also one of the most powerful marketing and commercial platforms on the planet. Major global brands invest here because the visibility and prestige that the competition returns are guaranteed. Additionally, sponsorship is flexible. A brand can place its logo on a car, partner with a specific driver, sponsor a circuit, or, at the highest level, become a global partner. Banco Santander has perfectly understood this potential, betting on the sport, positive returns, and brand image for two decades.
Part of history
On the legendary curves of the world’s most spectacular circuits, in some of the cars most admired by billions of fans worldwide, the Banco Santander logo is already an iconic and essential image. Over the years, the entity has moved from sponsoring iconic teams and drivers to operating within a global ecosystem: championship, team, content, education, and commercial activation.
Moreover, Santander’s history with Formula 1 can be read as an evolution in five phases: entry with McLaren in 2007, maximum visibility with Ferrari in 2010, strategic pause in 2018 (in its commitment to the UEFA Champions League), return to Ferrari sponsorship focusing on sustainability in 2022, and a new stage as the official bank of F1 alongside Williams from 2025. Always accompanying the sport in its transformation into a broader, modern phenomenon connected with new generations.
Read more Leonor returns to the classrooms: a princess among 4,000 new university students
For all these reasons, it is almost impossible to understand the development, evolution, and growth of Formula 1 without Banco Santander, an indispensable ally in the golden age of the competition. Its story has been built over years, linked to some of the most relevant moments, teams, drivers, and markets of the championship, until 2026, when the entity becomes the official global sponsor of F1 and Founding Partner of the Spanish Grand Prix in Madrid. This last race will undoubtedly be the closest.
The global and the local
Madrid is not just another city for Banco Santander, but its natural market, the place where the entity can connect its global history with a local moment that is, in itself, a cultural, sporting, and economic opportunity of great relevance for the capital. An occasion to connect the history of F1 with the future of Madrid. Because beyond the city entering the calendar, this new race marks a turning point, turning F1 into a cultural, urban, and emotional experience in the capital.
In a world where we tend to postpone important decisions waiting for absolute certainty or the “ideal moment” that never comes, Banco Santander wants to help people overcome the fear of moving forward by offering financial support and the necessary tools. There is no room for hesitation in racing either; decisions are made in milliseconds under extreme pressure. Success does not come from theoretical perfection but from the ability to act and correct on the fly. That is why, in F1 and in life, the best time to act is the present, regardless of uncertainties. This is the Make Now Matter philosophy proposed by Banco Santander together with Formula 1.
Read more Total eclipse
