Business of Sport

Audi slams brakes on Qatari F1 buyout rumours

November 13, 2024, 11:50 AM

Audi Qatar F1 — Gernot Dollner, Audi's CEO (left) at an F1 race this year. The company told AGBI it did 'not engage in speculation'

‘The team is not for sale’
Qatar already owns VW stake
QIA big investor in sport

Carmaker Audi has said its F1 team is not for sale, scuppering online rumours that the company was preparing to sell to Qatar’s QIA sovereign wealth fund.

“We do not engage in speculation. The team is not for sale,” an Audi F1 spokesperson told AGBI on Tuesday.

Qatar already holds a major stake in VW, which owns a large stake in Audi. Its Qatar Sports Investments fund is a major investor in sports around the world, including holding a 70 percent stake in France’s PSG football team.

Several other Gulf states have already invested in motorsports. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) owns a 20.5 percent stake in Aston Martin through its investment in EV company Lucid.

Bahrain’s sovereign wealth fund Mumtalakat has owned a major stake in McLaren Group since 2007.

In October, it emerged that Abu Dhabi-based investment vehicle CYVN Holdings had entered a non-binding agreement to buy 100 percent of McLaren’s automotive business from Mumtalakat.

Last year, Abu Dhabi-based G42, an artificial intelligence firm owned by the emirate’s Mubadala sovereign wealth fund, formed a partnership with the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team to provide data analytics and technology support.

The spokesperson said that Audi’s Formula 1 project is a long-term development and its future is not in question.

“We are firmly convinced that Formula 1 and Audi are a perfect fit. It is in line with our strategy.

“Even though it is an ambitious project that takes time, we believe that we can demonstrate innovative strength and boost the Audi brand in the premier class of motorsport,” the spokesperson said.