PepsiCo is ramping up its sports sponsorship strategy by signing a five-year deal with Silverstone to become the official soft drinks and snacks partner of the venue, which attracts more than 2 million visitors each year.
The deal will give PepsiCo a year-round platform across events including the Formula 1 British Grand Prix, British MotoGP, the British Touring Car Championship, CarFest and Christmas at Silverstone.
Through a shared focus on elevating the live event experience, PepsiCo and Silverstone aim to create moments that bring people together through sport, entertainment and food.
Six major experiential activations will take place each year across Silverstone’s biggest events, with PepsiCo’s brands playing a central role in how fans celebrate, connect and enjoy race weekends and year-round events
The partnership builds on activations staged during July’s Formula 1 British Grand Prix, where the company tested how its brands could become part of the wider fan experience.
Gatorade made the UK debut of its Run the Circuit concept, giving hundreds of fans the opportunity to run the Silverstone track shortly before the race.
Meanwhile, Doritos brought its Taste the Thrill campaign to the venue through a dedicated ‘Thrill Zone’, offering competitions, merchandise and the chance to win a hot lap. The brand also served Doritos Loaded, a food concept using its tortilla chips as the base for a more substantial snack.
Finally, Pepsi’s House of Treats offered customised drinks designed to tap into growing demand for flavour experimentation and personalised beverages.
The Silverstone partnership is designed to further strengthen PepsiCo’s growing “away from home” presence across UK sport and entertainment venues, including Wembley Stadium connected by EE, The O2, Hill Dickinson Stadium and Barclays Hampden.
PepsiCo UK business unit controller Mark Whitaker said: “Silverstone is one of the world’s most iconic sporting venues, and it brings together fans in moments that truly matter. This partnership gives us an exciting opportunity to connect with those fans in new ways – through bold flavours, immersive brand experiences and shared moments of enjoyment across our food and drink portfolio.
“By working closely with Silverstone and Carlsberg Britvic, we’re creating experiences that go beyond refreshment – bringing our brands to life in ways that are engaging, memorable and rooted in how people come together to enjoy live sport and entertainment.”
Silverstone head of partnerships Rachel James added: “We are always looking for ways to make a visit to Silverstone even more memorable, and this partnership brings together two organisations with a shared ambition to create bold, engaging experiences for fans.
“The response to Pepsi, Doritos and Gatorade activations at this year’s British Grand Prix demonstrated the potential of the partnership. We are excited to build on that success over the next five years and give fans even more opportunities to come together, discover something different and enjoy their time at Silverstone.”
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