AlphaTauri Becomes Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team, Contender For Worst Name Ever

Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team. Just let that sink in for a second. As of today, it’s the new name of Red Bull Racing’s junior outfit, formerly known as Scuderia AlphaTauri. You can’t win Formula One championships in January, but you can certainly take the prize for the worst team name.

It’s an organisation that’s no stranger to an identity change. When Red Bull bought out Minardi ahead of the 2006 season, the Italian team became Toro Rosso – a simple translation of its parent company. Simple, yet effective.

It became AlphaTauri in 2020 in a bid to advertise the energy drinks giant’s foray into the world of fashion, but it appears to have given up on self-advertising in favour of taking third-party cash (app).

You’re going to have to get used to Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team, with the agreement between Red Bull and payment service giant Visa a ‘multi-year’ one. No word on when that ends, but it’ll also see the Visa logo appear on RBR’s cars too, just without the headline sponsor name. Fortunately.

Of course, this means a new livery for the team and overalls for the drivers. We’ll get a look at these on 8 February, at a launch event taking place in Las Vegas. Because where else would a glitzy Formula One event take place in the year that is 2024?

Peter Bayer, chief executive officer of Visa Cash App RB Formula One Team (the last time we’re typing that out, promise), said: “It’s fantastic to reveal the new identity and to welcome new partners as we embark on the next phase of the team’s Formula One story.”

“Faenza is entering a new era of racing, staying true to our roots as a hothouse for talent but now with an even greater focus on competing for the biggest prizes in F1”.

Let’s hope they gain a little more success than the time Visa’s big rival, Mastercard, had a brief crack as headline sponsor of Lola in the 1997 F1 season.