Mercedes staff edge Aston Martin 3-1 in annual charity football match as F1 rivals raise funds off-track

Mercedes staff defeated their Aston Martin counterparts 3-1 in the men’s fixture of the teams’ annual charity football match at Brackley Town FC’s St James Park, while Aston Martin claimed the women’s contest 2-1. The event, held for the third time since 2022, raised funds for two charities supported by the neighbouring Northamptonshire-based F1 outfits.

Aston Martin directed its share of the proceeds to Movember, the men’s health charity focused on suicide prevention, prostate cancer and testicular cancer awareness. Mercedes’ portion went to Helen & Douglas House, a children’s hospice that supports families caring for terminally ill babies and children.

“It’s a fantastic way to bring both teams together off-track,” Mercedes F1 charity and community outreach lead Imogen Tait told BBC Radio Northampton. “Unsurprisingly, a lot of us are very, very competitive, so what better way than to bring our team members together?”

Tait also stressed the broader purpose behind the event. “It is so important that we use our resources to give back and to do good. This is just one way that we can give back to this area.”

The match took place in the wake of the Spanish Grand Prix at the new Madring circuit, where the on-track fortunes of the two teams could hardly have been more different. Mercedes claimed its tenth grand prix victory of the season, with championship leader Kimi Antonelli crossing the line first. Aston Martin, by contrast, endured a difficult weekend — Fernando Alonso finished 17th and Lance Stroll retired from the race.

That contrast is reflected in the constructors’ standings. Mercedes leads with 503 points, ahead of Ferrari on 358 and McLaren on 306. Aston Martin sits tenth with just three points, having yet to find a significant performance breakthrough despite introducing a revised B-spec car at the Hungarian Grand Prix and further power unit upgrades in subsequent races.