Max Verstappen News: F1 Champ Sponsor Retained Despite Money Laundering Allegations
Two-time F1 champion Max Verstappen is continuing to have Jumbo as a sponsor, even after the Dutch supermarket chain had all other motorsport contracts cancelled after they were accused of money laundering.
Frits van Eerd stepped down as Jumbo CEO in September as he was arrested for being involved in an on-going investigation into money laundering. The investigation is said to be surrounding automotive trade, motorsport sponsorships, and real estate transactions.
Ton van Veen has stepped up as temporary CEO as the investigation continues with the supermarket chain claiming they are not involved with any money laundering activities. Van Veen explained in the companies annual report:
"This also has consequences for our sponsorship. We will no longer continue with that. We will also take a critical look at our activities in motorsport.
"An exception to this is the contract with Max Verstappen."
Verstappen's manager Raymond Vermeulen spoke to Dutch newspaper, Algemeen Dagblad in September. He explained:
"Caution is in order here. We are waiting for the facts to be on the table. We have been in contact with Jumbo and the management and marketing will continue as usual.
"We have agreements with Jumbo, and the supermarket is not part of the investigation. That was clearly stated.
"Let's be careful with all kinds of suggestive things and wait for the facts to come out."
This comes as AlphaTauri have lost two of their sponsors, Fantom and ICM.com, as well as Ferrari and Mercedes losing Velas and FTX, respectively.
F1 fans are already looking ahead to the 2023 season which is due to kick off with the Bahrain Grand Prix on Sunday 5th March. Verstappen dominated the 2022 season breaking the record of number of race wins in a season with fifteen and will be looking to come back fighting to win another championship.