From Cigarettes to ZYN: Ferrari Partnership Reignites Debate on Nicotine in Sport

The colour red has always told stories in Formula 1. For decades, it carried the shadow of cigarette advertising; this week in Italy, it was presented as the banner of a different narrative, one centred on “smoke-free alternatives”.

Philip Morris International (PMI) used the historic Ferrari Museum in Maranello to unveil the next phase of its long relationship with Scuderia Ferrari HP, confirming that the ZYN nicotine pouch brand will appear on selected Ferrari liveries from the 2025 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. The partnership will extend into the 2026 season and include the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli championship.
The announcement places motorsport back at the centre of a global argument over how nicotine products should be marketed in the 21st century.

A message of transition

PMI executives framed the deal as evidence of corporate transformation. Addressing journalists, Yann Marois, President of Smoke-Free Products Global Brands, said the company was committed to replacing cigarettes with scientifically substantiated alternatives.

“Engaging with Formula 1 allows us to reach adult smokers with information about better options,” he said, adding that ZYN was intended only for legal-age consumers and was “not risk-free”.

Ferrari’s Chief Racing Revenue Officer, Lorenzo Giorgetti, echoed the tone of renewal. “Our collaboration is built on innovation and long-term thinking,” he said. “We evolve together as technology and society evolve.”

The companies stressed that Formula 1’s audience is overwhelmingly adult and that marketing would follow strict responsibility standards.

Questions remain

Public health advocates are less convinced. Critics argue that linking nicotine to the glamour of elite sport could attract young people and blur the line between harm reduction and promotion.

The concern is particularly acute in countries such as South Africa, where new tobacco legislation is under discussion and policymakers are weighing how to regulate pouches, vapes, and heated products. During interviews in Maranello, executives faced repeated questions about youth exposure, evidence of reduced harm, and the ethics of high-visibility sponsorship. PMI pointed to U.S. FDA authorisation of ZYN and to company figures showing that more than 41 million adults worldwide now use its smoke-free portfolio.

The theatre of Maranello

The setting added its own symbolism. Journalists were led through a pit-stop demonstration beside a Ferrari replica car before gathering in the museum’s convention room for the media panel. Later, guests tested F1 simulators and toured halls filled with championship machines, ending the evening in the Sala delle Vittorie among rows of glittering trophies.

Outside, Maranello’s narrow streets carried on with ordinary life, espresso cups clinking, scooters darting past the factory gates, a reminder that global branding decisions eventually filter down to real communities.

A turning point?

Whether the partnership represents genuine progress or clever repackaging will be judged over time. For Ferrari, the deal secures significant commercial backing as the sport enters an expensive technological era. For PMI, it offers a powerful platform to promote its smoke-free strategy.

For fans and regulators, it revives an old question in a new form: what place should nicotine have in the world’s fastest sport?

As the lights go on for another Formula 1 season, the answer will be debated from Maranello to Johannesburg, proving that in motorsport, even the paintwork can spark a global conversation.