Formula 1 Season is Finally Here—And Fashion Brands Are Vying for Pole Position

The first F-word you think of in relation to Marks & Spencer may be food or fashion, but it could soon be Formula 1. Surprised? Probably not, if you’ve been keeping even a squinted eye on not only the sports pages, but cinema, fashion spreads and the social media accounts of chic people across the globe.

Interest in the sport is at an all-time high—picture a fanbase of 827 million people worldwide, growing at around 12% each year—and fashion brands are vying to become aligned with it.

Louis Vuitton is the official partner of the Formula 1 Louis Vuitton Monaco Grand Prix 2026. Tommy Hilfiger is the clothing sponsor of the Cadillac Formula 1 Team, and was also a major sponsor of the F1 The Movie (the largest-grossing sports film of all time, starring Brad Pitt). Perfect Moment and the BWT Alpine Formula One Team recently released a collaborative collection. Reiss has debuted two drops with McLaren Formula 1 Team, and of course, Ferrari has its own fully fledged fashion line.

However, “the commercialisation of Formula 1 is not a new trend,” says Natasha Bird, journalist and founder of Tough Crowd. “Fashion’s involvement in Formula 1 to the extent that it is now is new, but it follows a pattern that we have seen before.”

“Brands noticed the potential to dress the drivers a while ago. Much in the way that any brand has invested in influencer marketing, brands recognised that the F1 drivers are now some of the biggest influencers in the world, so dressing them was part of any smart brand’s influencer marketing strategy and probably very lucrative,” Bird adds. Let's remember Lewis Hamilton is no stranger to a fashion week front row and is also a global brand ambassador for Lululemon.

And who could forget Chanel’s 2023 Cruise collection, complete with race car–inspired T-shirts, boilersuits and that now-famous racing helmet bag? Proof that, much like fashion’s growing association with sport—think Gucci and tennis, Louis Vuitton and golf, and Celine’s sell-out Pilates pieces—the Formula 1 connection has been bubbling away for quite some time.

Now, however, with "recognition that many, many more women and young people are now spectators—more than they were before—more brands are wanting to latch on to that target market, having recognised that this is a very lucrative space to be in,” Bird notes. To paint a clearer picture, according to Formula 1, 43% of fans now under the age of 35 (an increase of a very impressive 51 million year-on-year) and female representation has risen to 42%.

For Tommy Hilfiger, though, a more personal element for industry alignment is at play. “My love for racing started early—I used to sneak peeks through the fence at Watkins Glen, the home of the U.S. Grand Prix. That passion never left me,” says Hilfiger, speaking exclusively with Marie Claire UK. “Over the years, it’s become part of the brand’s DNA, from sponsoring Team Lotus and Ferrari to Mercedes-AMG F1, and our five-collection collaboration with Lewis Hamilton. Joining the ride of F1 The Movie—and sponsoring the fictional APXGP team—is a natural extension of our longstanding heritage that fuses our love of speed, style and storytelling.”

“Formula 1’s global presence is more inclusive and influential than ever before, transcending into what I call ‘fashiontainment,’ and we’re excited to be shaping the journey with them both on and off the track,” he continues.

Although, Bird stresses, while fashion brands continue to “hop on the bandwagon” of growing F1 interest, it’s the early adopters and true supporters of the sport who will be rewarded most. “Tommy Hilfiger was one of the first fashion brands to sponsor the F1 Academy [an accelerator programme to get women, who are very much underrepresented in the sport, onto the leaderboard], and that got them a lot of brilliant support and credibility.”

“It was a good move from an ethical perspective to be investing in women, but it was also a good move from a commercial perspective, because all of those women spectators took note that Tommy Hilfiger as a brand was one of the first to step up and wholeheartedly support women’s ambitions in the sport too.”

Beyond personal passion or commercial ROI, there are some striking parallels between fashion and motorsport, notes Kewal Gala, co-founder of emerging fashion brand Margene and a former designer for Phoebe Philo, Marc Jacobs and Margaret Howell: “Having worked in the industry, I felt there was an eerie sense of parallel that could be drawn between F1 and fashion—the fast pace, the competitive spirit, the endless cycle of teams changing, the ego clashes.” As a nod to these similarities, he designed a pair of racing driver-style trousers for a past-season collection.

So while Formula 1 fashion is certainly having a moment, true fans will be looking for more than just a quick collab. The brands that dig deeper—and genuinely connect with the sport’s community—are the ones most likely to win.

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