Branson exits Brawn tie-up
SIR Richard Branson’s Virgin Group will drop sponsorship of the Formula One (F1) team Brawn GP next year, the business magnate said yesterday, as it has become too expensive.
“We got in when it was very cheap and it’s been great for us with global coverage, but I suspect next year the price will be astronomical,” he said.
Virgin’s sponsorship was key for Brawn this season, allowing the team to take part in F1.
But the team’s success – Jenson Button leads the driver standings, while Brawn heads the constructor’s table – means that Virgin may be priced out of the runnings.
“Virgin have most likely got the mileage we needed from the sponsorship,” Branson added. “Their value has gone from next to nothing to £50m a year and we’re delighted for them and we’ll have had a fantastic year with them,” he said.
The bearded tycoon has not ruled out switching sides, and pledging his allegiance to another team. He said Virgin “may have to look somewhere else with a smaller team”.
The news came as Branson, who also owns the airline Virgin Atlantic, urged the government not to contemplate bailing out ailing carrier British Airways (BA).
He said that his own airline had considered, but ruled out, a takeover bid for BA, on the grounds that the company was worthless, its liabilities too significant, and its pension deficit particularly problematic.
BA management is due to hold talks with its cabin crew and ground staff this week over proposed pay cuts and lay-offs. Last week, BA boss Willie Walsh asked staff to work free.
He has said the airline is in a “fight for survival.”