MUMBAI: Juan Villalonga, the man who had the vision of bringing telecom major Telefónica into Formula One, will deliver the first keynote address at the Formula One Sponsorship Forum.

The event takes place from 16-17 November 2005 in Monaco, France. In India Formula One action airs on ESPN Star Sports (ESS).

Villalonga, the former chairman of Telefónica and one of Europe’s most eminent and influential business executives, still has close links to Formula One and is highly knowledgeable about the business of the sport. He said, “I wish there had been a conference like this when I was working on the proposal to bring Telefónica into Formula One. The sponsorship forum is the perfect opportunity for a potential sponsor to meet all the right people and do all its research within a concentrated two day period.”

Villalonga’s vision to introduce Telefónica to Formula One has since been more than justified after Renault and Spanish driver Fernando Alonso took the 2005 constructors and drivers world championships. Formula One’s stock in Spain has risen hugely and this has been a major boost for Telefónica’s sponsorship.

Joining Villalonga at the event will be hundreds of delegates from companies worldwide. Companies registered to attend include Allianz, AMD, British American Tobacco, BMW, Credit Suisse, Diageo, Intel, Panasonic, Petronas, SAP, Shell, Ford, Siemens, Emirates, Toyota Motor Corporation and Vodafone.

The forum is a meeting place for all of Formula One’s stakeholders to network, debate and close deals. 40 seminars taking place throughout the two day period, chaired by well-known experts across a range of different sectors. All participants will be able to join in any of these workshops and contribute to open debates, some of which will be reported or televised:

There will also be an exhibition and demonstration area consisting of 1000 sqm of space to demonstrate the latest equipment, techniques, solutions and advances.