F1 Sponsor under fire for misleading sustainability claims

As a respected news outlet, the FT has come under heavy scrutiny for their involvement in Aramco’s spread of misinformation. Andrew Simms of the New Weather Institute said ‘The content at the heart of these allegations was jointly produced by Aramco and the FT.’

‘The Financial Times built a reputation of quality climate journalism that is now being put under threat by working with the world’s biggest oil company to spread misleading messages on how to cut pollution’.

Aramco is 95% owned by the Saudi Arabian state, which has an increasing influence in the world of sport – not least in the realm of football, where Saudi recently purchased UK club Newcastle United in 2021.

F1 has an estimated 1.56 billion fans worldwide, making it a target for Saudi interests. ‘Saudi Aramco poses a direct threat to a liveable planet’ said Frank Huisingh of Fossil Free Football.

‘Big oil is deeply unpopular, so they spend hundreds of millions on PR, including associating […] with the sports we love.’

Complaints by the UK advertising watchdog ASA condemned the oil giant’s ‘confusing use of terminology’ and ‘misleading environmental claims’ in promoting its ‘advanced’ and ‘low carbon’ fuels.

A spokesperson for F1, who is not subject to any complaints, said it had set itself a target to reach net zero emissions by 2030.

‘We have the most efficient engines on the planet in F1 and we will move from conventional fuel to sustainable fuels in 2026.

‘Aramco is working with us to produce the technology for the fuels but there are many other fuel suppliers in the pot who are working with teams they supply to develop their own’.

Regardless of any efforts made toward F1’s goal, campaigners have argued that Aramco’s adverts obscure the fact that the company is overwhelmingly geared towards oil production.

According to reports, Aramco currently pumps out around nine million barrels of crude oil a day.

The actions of Aramco and FT also raise questions about the efficacy of existing regulations and oversight mechanisms in addressing greenwashing.

Despite growing awareness of the issue, the lack of stringent enforcement mechanisms allows companies to engage in deceptive marketing practices with impunity. As a result, consumers are left vulnerable to manipulation, while genuine efforts to promote sustainability are overshadowed by the false promises of greenwashing.

Meaningful progress towards sustainability requires a concerted effort by both businesses and regulators to ensure that environmental claims are backed by concrete actions and measurable outcomes.