Ella Bebbington
On June 26, Alpine F1 announced that the investment groups RedBird Capital and Otro Capital would be taking a €200 million equity share of their team.
Notably, two members of the investment into the UK-based racing team are Hollywood actor Ryan Reynolds and fellow Wrexham Football Club owner Rob McElhenney, who earlier this year achieved a National League title win for their football club.
Who are the investors?
RedBird Capital are an investment group juggernaut. They have shares in a number of sports clubs, including football teams such as AC Milan and the French Ligue 1 side, Toulouse. They have also invested in Fenway Sports Group, who own Liverpool FC and the Boston Red Sox Baseball team.
RedBird Capital is a private investment firm that focuses on building up high-growth companies for a longer future. The firm’s investors include Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, who have famously supported and nurtured the Welsh Football League side, Wrexham FC in recent years.
What does this investment mean for Alpine?
This €200 million investment could work wonders for Alpine. The team currently runs fifth in the Constructors’ Championship, with drivers Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly standing at a respectable 9th and 10th in the Drivers’ Championship.
However, after finishing fourth last year in the World Constructors’ Championship, the team sees themselves bumped down to 5th in the constructor’s championship this year after the rise of Aston Martin, who have soared from finishing 7th last year to an impressive 3rd on the 2023 grid currently.
“Alpine has provided inconsistent results despite their team being dubbed ‘the best of the rest’…”
This investment could not come at a better time for the team, following reports of their chief executive Laurent Rossi being irritated by the team’s inconsistent start to the season. Despite their optimism at the start of the season after recruiting Grand Prix winner Pierre Gasly, Alpine has provided inconsistent results despite their team being dubbed ‘the best of the rest’ after their impressive finish last year.
What can Alpine use the investment for?
Essentially, the team cannot use this money to improve their car in any way due to the cost cap that gives every team the same budget for building their car. So why is this money so important for the team?
The investment can be used for outside purposes, including building a greater appeal for the sport and the team whilst engaging with both new and old fans.
Whilst there have been developments in recent years that have allowed F1 to develop a greater audience appeal, whether it has been the use in the use of social media or Netflix’s ‘Drive To Survive’ docuseries, Alpine can use this money to develop themselves individually rather than F1 as a whole the whole.
“This association is an important step to enhance our performance on all levels.”
Alpine chief executive Laurent Rossi said in an exclusive interview with Formula 1: “This association is an important step to enhance our performance on all levels.
“First, Otro Capital, RedBird Capital Partners and Maximum Effort Investments, as international players with strong track record in the sports industry, will bring their recognised expertise to boost our media and marketing strategy, essential to support our sporting performance over the long term.”
Only time will tell for what this investment will do for the team and its racing prospects.
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Image courtesy of Clément Delacre on Unsplash No changes were made to this image. Image license found here.
Ella Bebbington
Ella is a Sports Editor for Empoword Journalism. Her favourite sport is F1 and is in her first year at university studying a sports journalism degree. In the future she hopes to be an F1 journalist.