Porsche to Acquire 50% Stake in Red Bull Formula 1 Operations

In today’s edition of the Front Office Sports newsletter, we’re taking a look at a German carmaker potentially returning to Formula 1.

Making a Comeback

After months of?speculation, Porsche is entering Formula 1 with one of the competition’s top teams — and claiming a massive stake in its future success.

A new?document?from Morocco’s Conseil de la Concurrence reveals the German auto manufacturer has plans to acquire a 50% of Red Bull Technology LTD?— the subsidiary of the energy drink conglomerate primarily responsible for its F1 operations. Motorsport-Total was the first to report on the press release.

Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Porsche’s main responsibility in the partnership will be to?develop power units?for Red Bull Racing and Alpha Tauri cars.

Red Bull?said?that the joint venture was still under discussion, citing FIA’s imminent approval of the 2026 engine changes.

• Motorsport’s governing body is expected to require all F1 power units to run on?100% sustainable fuel, place a larger emphasis on electrical power, and not feature an MGU-H.
• The new regulations are expected to be finalized sometime in August.

Red Bull is?partnered?with Oracle on a five-year,?$500 million?title sponsorship deal. It remains to be seen how that will be affected by the changes in 2026.

Volkswagen’s F1 Resurgence

Assuming the partnership goes through, it’ll be a huge return to F1 for Porsche.

The?Volkswagen AG?subsidiary previously entered a team in the World Championships from 1957 through 1962 and supplied power units to McLaren under the TAG badge from 1983 through 1987.

Another Volkswagen brand —?Audi?— is rumored to be teaming up with McLaren F1 for 2026.

Conversation Starters

• CVC Capital Partners will receive a loan of $505 million from HPS Investment Partners to facilitate its investment in French professional soccer.
• Want to know what it’s like to be CEO of a Premier League club or launch iconic video games with Microsoft and EA Sports? Peter Moore has done all that and more over the course of his career and he just joined our new podcast, My Other Passion, to talk about it with Front Office Sports EIC Ernest Baker. Listen or watch on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.
• The WWE has created the first pre-professional NIL pipeline program, which has translated to full-time jobs for multiple athletes from its first class.
• Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder and the House Oversight Committee agreed to terms of a deposition roughly two hours before it began on Thursday.
• Hear about the day’s most important business of sports stories in five minutes or less by listening to our daily podcast The Leadoff.

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