That … is going to take some getting used to.
A widely-anticipated move was made official on Wednesday, as Red Bull’s two Formula 1 teams announced a new partnership with Visa. Under the partnership, Visa will become the first global partner of both Red Bull F1 teams, bringing a new team to the grid in the form of Visa Cash App RB, formerly known as AlphaTauri.
That new team name will be Visa Cash App RB F1 Team.
According to the statement provided to the media, including SB Nation, it is Visa’s first “major global sponsorship in 15 years,” and covers not just the team formerly known as AlphaTauri, but also Red Bull as well as the organization’s entry in the F1 Academy. Visa will have title partnership on the F1 Academy team entry and the Oracle Red Bull Racing team, and the company’s logo will appear on the Oracle Red Bull Racing and Visa Cash App RB cars, as well as the F1 Academy entries from the respective teams.
“It’s fantastic to reveal the new identity and to welcome new partners as we embark on the next phase of the team’s Formula 1 story,” said Peter Bayer, Chief Executive Officer of the new Visa Cash App RB team, in the statement provided to the media. “Faenza is entering a new era of racing, staying true to our roots as a hothouse for talent but now with an even greater focus on competing for the biggest prizes in F1. We have a bold vision for the team led by myself and Team Principal, Laurent Mekies and having future-focused partners such as Visa and Cash App alongside us on that journey is hugely exciting.”
The team also announced in the statement that they will unveil the livery for the 2024 season at a special event in Las Vegas.
Visa Cash App RB is coming off a season that saw them languishing at the bottom of the Constructors’ standings for most of the season, before a late charge had they eying Williams and a seventh-place finish. While they ultimately fell short of catching Williams, they enter 2024 with Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo in place after starting 2023 with Tsunoda and rookie Nyck de Vries as their driver lineup.
De Vries was replaced by Ricciardo in the middle of the season, and then Ricciardo suffered a hand injury which sidelined him for multiple races. While Liam Lawson performed admirably in relief of an injured Ricciardo, having the two veterans lined up for the start of the 2024 season — plus some components from Red Bull’s RB19, the dominant package on the grid last season — should see AlphaTauri … we mean Visa … on the front foot as this season begins.
