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While the teams do not come in for much direct criticism – through their Johnnie Walker association, McLaren have made continued efforts to promote a ‘do not drink and drive’ message – it is Todt’s alleged “conflict of interest” which has prompted so much anger.
Eurocare claimed that when they contacted Todt about alcohol sponsorship he “claimed no responsibility for the matter”. However, since then, the Frenchman has been given a job as United Nations Special Envoy for road safety by Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon.
Map of the Monaco track
This conflicting capacity has infuriated the road safety lobby and driven them to vocally target Formula One. A letter signed by 108 road safety and transport organisations in 50 countries, sent to the UN, said there are “multiple conflicts of interest” in Todt’s promotion. “It is akin to appointing the head of a tobacco company as UN Special Envoy for Cancer,” they added.
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While it is not beyond debate, the authors of the report say there is a “strong and consistent link” between exposure to drinks marketing and increased alcohol consumption, particularly among young people.
Mariann Skar, the secretary general of Eurocare, said: “The amount of alcohol related exposure in F1 settings is extreme by anyone’s standards. There seems to be a lack of recognition within the F1 community about their responsibility when showing alcohol adverts every five seconds to an audience of 500 million viewers.”
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Katherine Brown, director the Institute of Alcohol Studies UK, added: “Alcohol sponsorship of motorsport generates seriously mixed messages about drink driving and road safety, and contradicts the spirit of current EU rules on alcohol advertising.”
The immediate chance of a ban seems unlikely, but the cogs of European bureaucracy are clearly moving in that direction. Just across the border from Monaco in France, it is already outlawed. Had they won the election, Labour had developed plans to ban alcohol advertising in sport in the UK, but with the Conservatives still in power, it is not on the agenda.