How PepsiCo is Building a Multi-Brand Ecosystem Inside Formula 1

Food and beverage brands have rapidly become anchor points between global consumers and the high-ticket motorsport world in recent years. Most recently, this is PepsiCo, whose investment in Formula 1 has expanded from a single deal to an unmistakable partner in a single season.

PepsiCo did not enter Formula 1 with a single logo placement and simple branding. Instead, the company has deliberately built its presence using facets of the F1 ecosystem to align with PepsiCo's own suite of brands that represent performance science, culture, and fan engagement.

Rather than activating everything at once, PepsiCo has layered its entry. Grand Prix on SI sat down with Jane Wakely, Executive Vice President, Chief Consumer and Marketing Officer and Chief Growth Officer of International Foods at PepsiCo to explore the brand's rapid progression into the Formula 1 space and point toward what comes next in 2026.

Establishing a Global Partnership with F1

PepsiCo's initial announcement came in May 2025, when the company announced that Gatorade, Doritos, and Sting Energy would enter the sport through a global partnership with F1. The deal immediately positioned PepsiCo branding and activations across the F1 calendar.

Jane Wakely emphasized that the partnership was designed from its outset to support multiple brands within the PepsiCo portfolio, each of which had a defined role within the sport.

“We’ve got a portfolio of brands that we’re involved with, and we have a differentiated portfolio strategy for each."
Jane Wakely, PepsiCo

Creating this structure from the outset allowed PepsiCo to move quickly while activating brands where the fit felt most authentic. Jane continued stating that "something that is so special and unique to Formula 1 is that it's different every single time," and that is something that the brand wanted to emulate as they expanded.

Gatorade, F1 Academy, and Fueling Women Athletes

PepsiCo’s next move came in quick succession, announcing Gatorade's partnership with F1 Academy in June 2025 and positioning its 'performance-driven' brand within women's motorsport.

Lisa Billard F1 Academy, Gatorade | Lids Harper for Parc Ferme via Golin Agency

The decision to start with F1 Academy was intentional and clearly a point of passion for Jane, as she began to reiterate statistics from memory about what is lacking for women athletes in today's sporting world and, more importantly, how PepsiCo and Gatorade have stepped up to the plate.

"Only 6% of global sports research focuses on women. So we are really wanting to do our part to step up to that. You want to push that up 6%, 10%, 20%. An average driver loses between 2kg and 4kg of fluid every race. So hydration and endurance are so important. Our Gatorade Sports Science Institute and bespoke scientific research optimizes hydration in those conditions for the athletes."
Jane Wakely, PepsiCo

That commitment became tangible with Gatorade's sponsorship of the F1 Academy rookie, Lisa Billard, who has become the brand's youngest-ever athlete ambassador.

Through the partnership, Billard will receive performance, hydration, and nutrition support from the Gatorade Sports Science Institute, including routine performance testing and tailored guidance on recovery for a female athlete.

For PepsiCo, supporting Billard and F1 Academy is a natural extension of their long-standing investment in women's sports globally. It sets a precedent for a foundation of elite performance within the sport, trickling its way up to Formula 1 itself.

As Wakely cleanly put it, "we always say we're born in the lab, proven on the field, on the pitch, on the ice rink, etc... We want to be proven on the grid too."

Doritos and Sting Fuel the Fan Experience and 'Democratize' The Paddock

While the Gatorade brand establishes PepsiCo's performance foundation and direct impact on drivers within the sport, its Doritos and Sting Energy brands have been guided by a broader objective: how fans experience race weekends.

As Formula 1 has continued to build on fan activations and experiences at races, PepsiCo's consumer-facing brands have leaned into the sport's growing emphasis on culture, playfulness, and accessibility within the Formula 1 paddock and track experience.

Doritos, a brand defined by its catchphrase "For the Bold," has already been activated through creative trackside moments and culinary experiences during the 2025 season. Those activations were designed to feel culturally specific and relevant to the host country.

In Mexico and Brazil, Doritos tapped local cuisines, while in Las Vegas, the brand took on a more visual role. As luck would have it, one of the corners on the Las Vegas Grand Prix circuit is triangular, aligning naturally with the iconography of a Doritos Chip... and thus the Doritos Corner was born.

Similarly, Sting Energy — PepsiCo's energy drink popular outside of the U.S. — will play a different but complementary role in the F1/PepsiCo ecosystem. Instead of playing on visuals and taste, Sting taps a 3rd sensory element: sound.

“Doritos is bold crunch, bold flavor. So we’re going to be bringing a lot of fun, bold twists to our fanbase to give that little twist to the Formula 1 experience. Sting we’re not going to bring to America, but we're in over 200 countries... If you listen to Formula 1 cars as they drive past - sting!"
Jane Wakely, PepsiCo

For PepsiCo, it's all about authenticity and 'democratizing the sport' as the brand expands, Wakely continued. The emphasis is on bringing 'fun engagement moments' to the fans while finding natural placements for products beyond logos and imagery.

Really where Wakely noted that she saw the most growth and opportunity across sport, but especially with F1 and F1 Academy were the women, both in the car and in the grandstands.

“Brands like ours can be part of driving fans to the match. We’ve featured female athletes on our packs and our advertising for decades. It's also good for growth because it's bringing new fans in. The type of fans that are engaging in sports... It's more women. It's younger. That's also a great growth prospect for us."
Jane Wakely, PepsiCo

Setting the Stage for 2026 with Mercedes

The final piece of PepsiCo’s Formula 1 ecosystem will begin in 2026, alongside the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

George Russell Mercede — Nov 21, 2025; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Mercedes driver George Russell (63) reacts after placing third in the Las Vegas Grand Prix at Las Vegas Strip Circuit. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

The Mercedes partnership represents the culmination of a deliberate strategy, built over the course of the 2025 season. The global platform transitioned from performance credibility and women's sport to fan engagement and ultimately the team integration with Mercedes.

By the time the partnership goes into full effect, PepsiCo will already have its products embedded in performance with Gatorade and F1 Academy and in culture and fan engagement through Doritos and Sting.

"For the first time, we are uniting three of our most iconic, category-leading brands – Gatorade, Sting, and Doritos – with one of the world’s most successful F1 teams. PepsiCo is bringing performance expertise, energy, and bold creativity to the Mercedes-F1 Team and to fans around the world.”
Jane Wakely, PepsiCo

Mercedes F1 — Jun 15, 2025; Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli (12) during the F1 Canadian Grand Prix at Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images | David Kirouac-Imagn Images

Together, Doritos, Sting, and Gatorade reflect PepsiCo's effort to make the F1 world feel more accessible and engaging to fans using elements as unifying as sound, food, and culture.

PepsiCo has become a clear example of how consumer brands can move beyond traditional sponsorship and build a true ecosystem with real impact designed to scale alongside Formula 1 itself.

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