Ahead of the MADRING’s debut as host of the TAG Heuer Spanish Grand Prix, the collection of commercial partners for both the race and the circuit is an impressive one.
Santander joined as Founding Partner, with American Express, Ford and Atletico Madrid among the circuit’s earliest Local Event Supporters, followed more recently by Real Madrid, El Corte Ingles, PwC and Aqualy, alongside a Madrid-specific layer to Heineken’s existing global partnership with F1.
Real Madrid’s arrival in August leaned on the same Valdebebas geography that first brought fierce LaLiga rivals Atletico into the fold, with Real Madrid City sitting just 200 metres from the circuit’s northern entrance.
El Corte Ingles followed a similar local logic in July, running a dedicated Fan Zone at Nuevos Ministerios, one of the city’s key transport hubs into the circuit.
Heineken’s involvement is a useful illustration of a constraint MADRING’s General Manager, Luis Garcia Abad, told Sector was central to building the portfolio in the first place, F1’s existing global partner agreements limit which local brands a new race can bring in.
“We have very good beer companies in Spain, but we cannot use them because F1 has a global partner with Heineken,” he explained.
Rather than working against MADRING, Heineken’s presence became something the circuit could utilise instead.
Abad framed that distinction as the defining challenge of assembling a sponsor portfolio inside F1’s existing commercial framework.
“We have had to play carefully,” he said.
“It is not easy to build a sponsor portfolio in Formula One because you have to respect all of the global agreements that already exist.
“We need to find the right categories and the right partners that can fit within that structure while still representing Madrid and Spain.
It is not easy to build a sponsor portfolio in Formula One because you have to respect all of the global agreements that already exist.
Luis Garcia Abad
“It is a unique opportunity to show Spanish companies to the rest of the world. Madrid is growing very fast and all the economic indicators are very strong, so it was the right time to bring Formula One here.”
That same balancing act shaped how MADRING approached credibility with prospective partners from the outset.
Abad said the circuit’s 10-year contract with F1 itself gave the project something concrete to point to before any sponsorship conversations began.
“We already had a contract properly signed with Formula One, so we approached our sponsors with something real. It is very important to deliver realities, not just promises.
“When you start a project like this, partners need to see that everything is confirmed and that the project is moving forward in a solid way.
“We are growing step by step. We already have a strong group of partners confirmed for the first race, but we still have time to continue building the portfolio.”
That same growth mindset extends to how Abad views the portfolio beyond this weekend.
Rather than treating the roster confirmed for the inaugural race as a finished picture, he described it as a foundation still being built on.
“There are different categories that we will develop, and we want to make sure that each one fits properly within the Formula One ecosystem,” he added.
“Our contract is long term, so we are not thinking just about the first year, but about building something consistent over time.”
With the race now arriving this weekend, MADRING heads into its debut with a partner roster that has grown steadily since the venue was confirmed, and by Abad’s own account, one that is still some way from finished.
