Stake’s partnership with Sauber is not new. In 2023, Stake and its live-streaming arm, Kick.com, first appeared on Sauber’s vehicles through initial sponsorship agreements. The team will now be known as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber and will launch its 2024 season at a special event in London in February 2024.
Adding star power to the rebranding, Canadian rapper Drake participated in the New Year’s Day announcement and is expected to make appearances at selected F1 races throughout the 2024 season.
Furthermore, Kick.com will have the naming rights to Sauber’s car chassis, which will be called the Kick Sauber C44. With Formula 1 teams required to build and maintain their vehicles, Stake effectively becomes an F1 vehicle manufacturer.
Stake.com was founded in 2017 by Australia’s youngest billionaire, Ed Craven, and Bijan Tehrani. Since then, it has rapidly grown to become the seventh-largest gambling group. According to the Financial Times, Stake reported an impressive $2.6 billion in gross gaming revenue in 2022, a significant increase from $105 million in 2020.
The platform has a global reach and attracts a substantial client base in regions such as Brazil, Japan, and Southeast Asia, where online gambling regulations are less defined. While awaiting licenses in Australia and Canada, Stake operates non-crypto online gambling in the US and the UK and holds traditional gambling licenses in Mexico and Paraguay.
Formula 1 has emerged as a favored platform for blockchain and cryptocurrency sponsorships, with notable players like Tezos, OKX, Binance, OpenSea, and ByBit making their presence known. However, the recent market downturn has caused some companies to withdraw their sponsorships.
Stake’s journey has not been without challenges. In September 2023, the platform experienced a $41 million loss due to a private key exploit targeting one of its wallets. The FBI linked this attack to the North Korean hacking group Lazarus.