Has the Red Bull power mystery been solved?

Since the death of Dietrich Mateschitz, much has changed at Red Bull. In the aftermath of Christian Horner’s sacking as Red Bull Formula 1 team boss, focus on power and who holds control at the parent company has come into sharp focus.

The mystery surrounding the 2% stake in Red Bull GmbH that changed hands on 31 May appears to be solved. An investigation by Autosport sister site Motorsport-Total.com has reinforced suspicions that the transaction did not, contrary to various media reports, ‘significantly alter the balance of power’.

Here’s the backstory: entries in the Austrian commercial register revealed 2% of Red Bull GmbH – the parent company of the F1 programme – were transferred from Chalerm Yoovidhya’s ownership to a Swiss trust company named Fides Trustees SA. The chairman of its board: a man named Martin Christopher Bowen.

Because Horner was dismissed as head of the Formula 1 programme just five weeks after this transaction, the internal reshuffling was interpreted by some as ‘the real reason behind Horner’s ousting at Red Bull’. This was based on speculation that a power shift from Thailand to Austria may have taken place within the Red Bull empire.

Asked for comment, Red Bull GmbH offered only a brief statement: “Such fiduciary arrangements are common practice to ensure long-term continuity in successful, large corporations. Beyond that, we kindly ask for your understanding that, as always, we do not publicly comment on internal company or family matters.”

This led to widespread speculation: Who is behind Fides, the Swiss trust company now managing the 2% stake? And who actually controls these shares in terms of voting rights? After all, those 2% are the deciding factor between the equal 49% holdings of the Yoovidhya clan and Mark Mateschitz in Red Bull GmbH.

Now, research has strengthened the suspicion that Fides is managing the 2% under a mandate from Yoovidhya – meaning the Thai side still effectively controls 51% of Red Bull GmbH. However, there is no official confirmation of this.

What is known is this: following the death of Dietrich Mateschitz in October 2022 – who had been the sole managing director of Red Bull GmbH – the Yoovidhya family initially took a stronger role in core operational matters. There was even talk of relocating the headquarters from Fuschl am See in Austria to Dubai or Amsterdam, likely for tax-related reasons. This idea was met with strong resistance from both the management team and staff in Fuschl.

Around the same time, tensions emerged over Horner’s future. According to media reports, those in Fuschl had wanted to dismiss the F1 team boss immediately after Horner was accused of sexual harassment and coercion. He was later cleared of any wrongdoing in an internal investigation. Thailand, however, insisted on standing by him.

More than two and a half years have passed since Mateschitz’s death. Under the operational leadership of the three managing directors – Alexander Kirchmayr (Finance), Oliver Mintzlaff (Projects & Investments, including Formula 1), and Franz Watzlawick (Beverages) – Red Bull GmbH has flourished, despite challenging global economic conditions.

Kirchmayr, Mintzlaff, and Watzlawick were personally chosen by Mateschitz as his successors before his death. And they have carried on his legacy successfully: in 2023, Red Bull surpassed €10billion in revenue for the first time; in 2024, this figure rose to €11.2bn, driven by 12.7bn cans sold worldwide.

This allegedly led to two key realisations within the Yoovidhya family. First, the original arrangement – that operations would be handled from Fuschl while they continued to benefit from the company’s profits – is, in fact, a comfortable one. The Austrian management team has proven it can perform exceptionally well even without Mateschitz.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, Dietrich Mateschitz, CEO And Founder Of Red Bull

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

Second, the debate about moving headquarters abroad, where the company might face a lower tax burden than in Austria, is now off the table. In the end, much is as it was: Fuschl runs the show, now under a triumvirate instead of Mateschitz alone – and Thailand collects 51% of the profits.

The decision to place the 2% stake in a Swiss trust with a mandate from Chalerm Yoovidhya likely means that, in the case of a deadlock on strategic decisions, there is now a neutral body in place to provide impartial guidance to the shareholders.

Thus, Fides could act as the decisive swing vote in situations like the Horner case, where shareholder opinions were reportedly divided for a long time. Whether Fides actually played a role in the Horner decision remains unclear. But the timing is striking: five weeks after the transaction, Horner was gone.

Insiders say that the stormy period following Mateschitz’s death is now over. In Austria, there are whispers that Mark Mateschitz and Chalerm Yoovidhya currently enjoy an excellent working relationship.

“Somehow everything changed in Formula 1 after Mateschitz died,” said Ralf Schumacher in an interview on the Formel1.de YouTube channel. Horner, in particular, had changed: “Suddenly he had much more power and started behaving differently than in previous years.”

Looking back, Schumacher believes it “backfired.” The investigation into Horner last year exposed deep fractures in the F1 programme – a reflection of boardroom disagreements at the highest level. Eventually, the shareholders realised, he added: “It’s getting worse and worse. We’re spending huge amounts of money, and we’re getting no results.”

Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

But the former F1 driver also believes mistakes were made on both sides. In February 2024, he said, “someone tried to force Horner out – and that went too far.” The idea of replacing a team principal, “as you would a football manager,” was understandable. “But what actually happened back then was a dirty campaign.”

In the end, the transfer of 2% may not have been a coup at all, but rather a quiet agreement among shareholders on the new order within Red Bull GmbH. And amid media speculation, personnel changes, and strategic shifts, what emerges is a picture not of abrupt power grabs – but of diplomatic stabilisation.