Charlotte Tilbury Is Now an Official Sponsor of F1 Academy — Formula 1's Female-Only Racing Championship
Photo: Courtesy of F1 Academy Limited
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Charlotte Tilbury is the latest brand to join in on the Formula 1 phenomenon. The luxury makeup line is now an official sponsor of F1 Academy — Formula 1's female-only racing championship. The partnership makes Charlotte Tilbury the first beauty brand and first female-founded brand to ever officially sponsor the sub-league, which will begin its second season in March.
Lola Lovinfosse, an 18-year-old F1 Academy driver, will wear a Charlotte Tilbury racing suit and helmet while driving a Rodin Motorsport-operated car adorned with the brand's signature Hot Lips motif. In a press release, the brands wrote, "This partnership will bring to life Charlotte Tilbury and F1 Academy's shared purpose to empower everyone, everywhere to feel their most confident."
Photos: Courtesy of F1 Academy Limited
For some time, Formula 1 racing has been one of the most popular sporting events tuned into globally, but it has specifically gained a larger female audience more recently, thanks in part to Netflix's "Drive to Survive" docuseries. In 2022 (before F1 Academy's 2023 inaugural season), global attendance of F1 events was up 36% from 2019 to 5.7 million. It was estimated then that 40% of F1 fans were female, up 8% from 2017.
The racing league has had a unique impact on fashion in recent years, with "motorcore" aesthetics rising in popularity on runways and social media. Thanks to the well-documented off-the-track style of racers like Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc — who have partnered with major labels like Valentino and Giorgio Armani, respectively — the sport has surpassed the boundaries of racing and broken into the fashion space in a significant way.
Beyond the personal style of individual drivers, fashion brands are cashing in on the phenomenon by partnering with teams on special projects or even collections inspired by the "motorcore" aesthetic. Since 2020, Tommy Hilfiger has partnered with Hamilton on multiple ready-to-wear collections and released a capsule collection with the Mercedes-AMG team. Last October, Puma tapped A$AP Rocky to creative direct its F1 collaboration.
Photo: Courtesy of F1 Academy Limited
Though this is the first official sponsorship between a beauty brand and F1 Academy, it's not the first time motorsports and makeup have overlapped. In November 2023, Anastasia Beverly Hills announced F1 Academy driver Bianca Bustamante as its first athlete ambassador. The 18-year-old, who has over 1.2 million followers on TikTok, created "Get Ready With Me" content using the brand's products and showcases the Anastasia Beverly Hills logo at the front of her car.
With this new Charlotte Tilbury deal, it looks like beauty is the latest industry for Formula 1 to take over, inviting even more fans to engage with the sport and buy into the hype — in more ways than one.
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