- 23.04.2026
- News
The Swiss Association for Tobacco Control Joins Global Call to End Tobacco Promotion in Youth-Focused Industries
A global coalition of health, advocacy, and civil society organizations has issued a joint appeal to major global brands and entertainment platforms—including Formula 1, Disney, Lego, and Mattel—urging them to strengthen policies that prevent indirect promotion of tobacco and nicotine products.
The letter raises concerns about the continued visibility of tobacco industry-linked branding, partnerships, and imagery across sports, entertainment, and consumer products. It expresses disappointment at the news of expanded partnerships between Formula 1 teams and tobacco companies. Formula 1 ended cigarette sponsorships in 2006. The coalition urges the international car racing company to do the same with other tobacco products, including nicotine pouches. It also raises concern at how the tobacco industry’s evolving marketing strategies framed around innovation, sustainability, or “smoke-free futures” may continue to normalize nicotine use, especially among younger audiences. Philip Morris International recently announced an expanded partnership with Ferrari to promote its Zyn nicotine pouches at Formula 1 races. The letter also mentions that British American Tobacco continues to promote its Velo nicotine pouch brand through its sponsorship of the Formula 1 McLaren team and recently announced a refreshed design to highlight the Velo logo.
Led by Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, the initiative also included separate letters to the CEOs of Walt Disney Company, Lego, and Mattel, urging them to support calls for Formula 1 to fully prohibit tobacco sponsorships. These companies operate multi-billion-dollar, cross-platform ecosystems spanning media, consumer products, live events, and digital environments. Their reach is vast: Disney’s content ecosystem engages hundreds of millions globally; Lego sells over 100 billion bricks annually; Mattel reaches children in more than 150 countries; and Formula One attracts a cumulative audience of over 1.5 billion viewers each season.
Taken together, their unparalleled visibility and cultural influence position them as key actors in shaping norms, behaviours, and lifestyle perceptions—particularly among young audiences, making their stance on tobacco-related partnerships highly consequential.
The issue underscores the growing complexity of tobacco marketing, which increasingly operates through indirect channels such as sponsorships, digital content, and lifestyle branding. The evolution of policies often lags behind new tobacco and nicotine products’ marketing.
The coalition calls for clearer safeguards to ensure that corporate partnerships and media content do not inadvertently contribute to the promotion of nicotine products. This includes stronger due diligence on commercial collaborations, greater transparency, and alignment with international public health commitments, including the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Although Switzerland has signed the Convention, it did not ratify it. More than 20 years later, it has only recently begun transcribing the convention into domestic law, and it continues to reject formal ratification.
The discussion also intersects with ongoing debates around advertising restrictions, youth protection, and the regulation of emerging nicotine products. It highlights the need for coherent approaches that address not only traditional advertising, but also newer forms of influence embedded in cultural and digital ecosystems.
"Marketing tobacco in the same venues as Disney, Lego and Hot Wheels is part of the industry's ongoing strategy to addict kids to products that harm them, while simultaneously claiming that their products are only for adults. F1 must protect kids and immediately end its relationship with the tobacco industry and ensure it is not a vehicle for marketing harmful and addictive products to young fans," said Yolonda C. Richardson, President and CEO of the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids
The international call to action reinforces the importance of vigilance and coordination among policymakers, civil society, and private sector actors in Switzerland and beyond.
PDFs of relevant documents (to be attached):
https://tobaccofreekids.org/Formula-One-letter
https://tobaccofreekids.org/Formula-One-Lego