In motor sport, a privateer is usually an entrant into a racing event that is not directly supported by an automobile manufacturer. Privateers teams are often found competing in rally

Rallying

Rallying, also known as rally racing, is a form of auto racing that takes place on public or private roads with modified production or specially built road-legal cars...

 and circuit racing events, and often include competitors who build and maintain their own vehicles. In previous Formula One

Formula One

Formula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...

 seasons, privately-owned teams would race using the chassis of another team or constructor in preference to building their own car; the Concorde Agreement

Concorde Agreement

The Concorde Agreement is a contract between the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile , the Formula One teams and the Formula One Administration which dictates the terms by which the teams compete in races and take their share of the television revenues and prize money...

 now prohibits this practise. Increasingly the term is being used in an F1 context to refer to teams who are not at least part-owned by large corporations, such as WilliamsF1

WilliamsF1

Williams Grand Prix Engineering Limited, trading as AT&T Williams, is a British Formula One motor racing team and constructor. It was founded and run by Sir Frank Williams and Patrick Head...

.

Many privateer entrants compete for the enjoyment of the sport, and are not paid to be racing drivers.