 Many F1 teams are heavily reliant on tobacco money |
Formula One's governing body is going to court in an attempt to overturn the European ban on tobacco advertising. Motorsport's governing body the FIA said on Wednesday that it is planning to take the European Commission to the European Court of Justice in a bid to prevent them imposing a ban in 2005.
The move is a response to the European Union's decision to bring forward by a year its original plan for a tobacco advertising and sponsorship ban in 2006.
The later date is in line with the wishes of the FIA, whose president Max Mosley said last month that the EU's decision could result in there being only a handful of F1 Grands Prix in Europe in future.
Mosley has for some years promised that motorsport would introduce its own tobacco advertising ban at the end of 2006 and says the FIA is working with the World Health Organisation towards that aim.
 Mosley argues that an early EU ban is self-defeating |
He says the EU's decision to bring forward its ban undermined its own plans and threw F1 back into the arms of the tobacco companies.
He argues that Formula One teams have contracts to 2006 and an EU ban from 2005 would force teams to limit the number of European Grands Prix they raced in.
Mosley has said there might be only six races in the EU by 2005.
The Belgian Grand Prix has been dropped this year following that country's unilateral decision to bring in its own ban, and Austria will follow next year.
China and Bahrain are scheduled to come in for 2004 with future races possible in Turkey and Russia.
India, Egypt, Mexico and another race in the United States are also being discussed as possible venues.
Mosley said the EU ban is a waste of time, because tobacco advertising would be beamed into Europe on television from the races where tobacco advertising is allowed.
He called the ban an "incredible piece of stupidity by the European Commission".
MMIX
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