Introduction

Tobacco advertising and sponsorship in Formula 1 (F1) racing, which was banned in Europe by the 2005 EU Tobacco Advertising Directive1 and internationally by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile since 2006,2 continues to this day through the Philip Morris sponsorship of Ferrari,3 thought to be worth $160 million (£124 million) annually.4

Although Marlboro advertising and related barcode alibis disappeared from Ferrari cars after 2010,5 during the 2018 championship, Philip Morris introduced a new marketing campaign, Mission Winnow, with text and logo branding on Ferrari cars and uniforms. Philip Morris states that Mission Winnow promotes their drive towards alternatives to traditional cigarettes and does not advertise tobacco products.6 However, the branding is strongly reminiscent of the Marlboro Chevron logo,4 and the trademark details for Mission Winnow include tobacco products.7 We argue that Mission Winnow is ‘smokescreen’ marketing, covertly advertising tobacco products,8 with much in common with Philip Morris’s earlier Marlboro barcode livery.5

We have quantified the tobacco content in the 2018 F1 Championship to assess compliance with regulatory restraints and to estimate audience exposure to this smokescreen marketing.