In addition to a lot of money and new fans, the new main sponsor also causes a lot of problems. The reason: There are restrictions on gambling advertising in several countries hosting Formula 1 races. Bravi says: “As we did last year, we will adhere to all applicable laws. And if Stake is banned, we will have an alternative team name. Depending on the country, we work with Stake or Kick, a different sponsor.”
In everyday racing this means: In certain countries, all Stake logos on the cars, team members' clothes, trucks and must be covered or replaced, probably with the “Kick” logo. In these countries, the racing team from Hinwil will not be competing under the team name “Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber”, but under a different name.
Sauber is probably violating the advertising ban with Stake
The new main sponsor is also causing problems for Sauber in Switzerland, because the gaming provider Stake does not have a license in this country and is therefore illegal. This is associated with an advertising ban. Nevertheless, the Stake logo is omnipresent on the website of the Swiss racing team Sauber, its social media presence and on the clothes of its employees.
For legal expert Patrick Krauskopf it is therefore clear: Sauber is probably violating the advertising ban: “Sponsoring would be allowed. In the present case, the brands Stake and Sauber are so linked together, or the term Stake is so strongly imprinted in the minds of viewers, that we have probably crossed the red line into unauthorized advertising," says Krauskopf, who works as a professor of competition law at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences.