Enzo Ferrari established Scuderia Ferrari on 16 November 1929, following a dinner in Bologna at which he secured financial backing from textile heirs Augusto and Alfredo Caniato and wealthy amateur racer Mario Tadini. The team initially raced cars produced by Alfa Romeo, managing a roster that at its peak included over forty drivers. Ferrari himself raced until the birth of his son Dino in 1932. The prancing horse badge appeared for the first time at the 1932 24 Hours of Spa, on a two-car team of Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Spiders that finished first and second. The symbol originated from Italian World War I ace Francesco Baracca, whose parents suggested Ferrari adopt the horse from their son's fighter plane.
When Alfa Romeo experienced economic difficulties in 1933, Scuderia Ferrari became the effective works racing operation for Alfa Romeo's current Monoposto Tipo B racers. In 1935, Ferrari and engineer Luigi Bazzi built the Alfa Romeo Bimotore — the first car to carry a Ferrari badge on the radiator. Alfa Romeo bought the Scuderia's shares in 1937 and transferred official racing activity to Alfa Corse from 1 January 1938. Ferrari disagreed with this reorganisation and was dismissed in 1939.
Ferrari founded Auto Avio Costruzioni Ferrari in October 1939. An agreement with Alfa prohibited use of the Ferrari name on cars for four years. The first true Ferrari cars, the Tipo 815s designed by Alberto Massimino, appeared at the 1940 Mille Miglia — driven by Alberto Ascari and the Marchese Lotario Rangoni Machiavelli di Modena — before World War II ended racing. Ferrari moved his headquarters to Maranello in 1943, where facilities were bombed in November 1944 and February 1945. Once the four-year restriction lapsed, the road car company became Ferrari S.p.A., with the racing department operating as SEFAC.
Ferrari has competed in Formula One since the championship's inaugural 1950 season — a record unmatched by any other constructor. The team's 16 Constructors' Championships include a sequence of six consecutive titles between 1999 and 2004. The 15 Drivers' Championships were won by Alberto Ascari (1952, 1953), Juan Manuel Fangio (1956), Mike Hawthorn (1958), Phil Hill (1961), John Surtees (1964), Niki Lauda (1975, 1977), Jody Scheckter (1979), Michael Schumacher (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004), and Kimi Räikkönen (2007). The 2020 Tuscan Grand Prix was Ferrari's 1000th Formula One World Championship race.
Michael Schumacher, who joined in 1996 and drove for the team through his first retirement in 2006, is the team's most successful driver. He won five consecutive Drivers' titles from 2000 to 2004 and 72 Grands Prix in Ferrari colours. The team's 2026 driver line-up comprises Charles Leclerc and seven-time World Champion Lewis Hamilton.
Team orders have generated significant controversy at several points. At the 1982 San Marino Grand Prix, Didier Pironi violated a pre-race agreement and passed Gilles Villeneuve despite the team displaying the slow sign; the resulting rift is often cited as a contributing factor to Villeneuve's fatal accident at the following race. At the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix, Rubens Barrichello was instructed to allow Michael Schumacher past after leading from pole position for 70 laps, prompting the FIA to ban team orders ahead of 2003. At the 2010 German Grand Prix, Fernando Alonso passed Felipe Massa after Ferrari informed Massa that Alonso was "faster than him" — widely interpreted as an order — leading to a fine of $100,000 and a referral to the World Motor Sport Council.
Ferrari has also historically held a veto on Formula One technical regulations, and in 1987 used the threat of departing for IndyCar as leverage to ensure V12 engines were not excluded from the rules. A Ferrari 637 IndyCar had already been constructed before the FIA concession ended the project.
Ferrari dominated international sportscar competition from the late 1940s through the mid-1960s, winning the World Sportscar Championship twelve times. The team won Le Mans nine times as a constructor (including six consecutive victories from 1960 to 1965) and the Mille Miglia eight times. The period from 1963 to 1967 saw the famous "Ford vs. Ferrari" battle in endurance racing, which transformed the commercial structure of motorsport.
Ferrari returned to factory-supported GT racing in 2006 through Ferrari Competizioni GT, working with partner teams such as AF Corse. AF Corse won seven of ten GT manufacturers' championships in the WEC between 2012 and 2022. In 2023, Ferrari returned to the top prototype class after a 50-year absence, entering the Le Mans Hypercar category with the Ferrari 499P. That car won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and Ferrari took the 2025 World Manufacturers' and Drivers' Championships.
The team has been based in Maranello since 1943. The Fiorano Circuit test track, built in 1972 on the same site, is used for development of both road and racing cars.
Ferrari has supplied engines to numerous Formula One teams, including Minardi (1991), Scuderia Italia (1992–1993), Sauber (1997–2005 and 2010–2025), Prost (2001), Red Bull Racing (2006), Scuderia Toro Rosso (2007–2013, 2016), and Marussia (2014–2015). For the 2026 season, Ferrari supplies the Haas F1 Team and the new Cadillac Formula One entry, with Cadillac signed to a multi-year deal using Ferrari engines and gearboxes until General Motors' own power unit is ready.