Dietrich Mateschitz is an Austrian businessman and co-owner of the ‘Red Bull’ canned energy drink brand. During a business trip, he had the idea to introduce an energy drink in the European market. Mateschitz enjoyed the taste of a Thai drink, which became the basis for the ‘Red Bull’ formula. In partnership with the proprietor of the Thai drink brand, he co-founded the company. ‘Red Bull’ became a cult phenomenon in the market and was then introduced to the international market. Mateschitz has owned various sports clubs and media entities on behalf of ‘Red Bull.’ ‘Red Bull,’ on the other hand, has been involved in legal battles in the past. Mateschitz’s political convictions, which he uses to influence non-business areas, have also caused problems for his company and other initiatives. Mateschitz is now one of the world’s top 100 wealthiest persons.
Childhood and Adolescence
Mateschitz was born on May 20, 1944, into a Croatian family in Sankt Marein im Mürztal, Styria, Austria. He studied marketing at the ‘Hochschule für Welthandel’ (now ‘Vienna University of Economics and Business’) for ten years.
Career of Dietrich Mateschitz
Mateschitz’s first employment was as a detergent salesman for ‘Unilever.’ After that, he went to work for ‘Blendax,’ a German cosmetics firm now acquired by ‘Procter & Gamble.’ Mateschitz’s employment was promoting the ‘Blendax’ toothpaste brand, which required him to travel regularly. He discovered a Thai syrupy energy-boosting drink called ‘Krating Daeng’ that healed his jet lag on one of his business trips to Thailand.
Mateschitz liked the taste of the drink so much that he decided to create his own. As a result, he approached Chaleo Yoovidhya, the owner of the Thai drink company, and proposed a collaboration. They agreed to split 49 percent of the company’s stock between them, with the remaining 2 percent going to Yoovidhya’s kid.
As a result, Mateschitz created his own version of the canned energy drink, which is today known as ‘Red Bull.’ However, there was no market for energy drinks during the company’s early years. Mateschitz took advantage of the chance to create a one-of-a-kind product.
‘Red Bull GmbH’ was created in 1984 by Mateschitz, Yoovidhya, and Yoovidhya’s eldest son, Chalerm Yoovidhya.
In 1987, the berry-flavored ‘Red Bull’ made its European debut (in Austria) and was an instant success. Although the original ‘Red Bull’ blend was sweeter than the present form, the underlying mixture of taurine and caffeine remained the same.
Other companies soon followed suit and began producing similar drinks. Mateschitz, on the other hand, was motivated rather than threatened. As a result, ‘Red Bull’ has risen to the top of the global energy drink market. Japan and India were the primary sources of revenue for ‘Red Bull.’
Mateschitz, who is a pilot and an extreme sports lover, extensively promoted ‘Red Bull’ among extreme sports fans, which fits perfectly with the brand’s theme. To promote the drink, he hoped to build a cult following. Social media sites had not yet been introduced at the time. Mateschitz enlisted the help of well-known university students to host parties in strange settings.
Mateschitz provided enough ‘Red Bull’ cans for the students to tie on the tops of their cars when they returned to university. ‘Red Bull’ became a popular drink in nightclubs as a result of the trend.
‘Red Bull’ originally sponsored and owned almost 60% of the ‘Sauber Formula One’ racing team, but its contract with the team expired in 2001.
Mateschitz purchased the ‘Jaguar Racing Formula One’ team from Ford in November 2004. From 2010, the team was rebranded “Red Bull Racing,” and it won the “Formula One World Constructors’ Championship” and the “Formula One World Drivers’ Championship” for four years in a row.
Mateschitz purchased the previous ‘Formula One’ Austrian ‘Grand Prix’ site, the ‘A1-Ring,’ and renamed it the ‘Red Bull Ring,’ in late 2004. The circuit reopened in May 2011 for the 2011 season of the ‘Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters.’ ‘Red Bull’ contacted the ‘Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile’ in December 2012 that they would like to host a ‘Grand Prix,’ despite Mateschitz’s announcement that he would not return to the ‘Formula One’ program.
Mateschitz purchased the Austrian football team ‘SV Austria Salzburg’ in April 2005. Then, in September, he teamed up with veteran Formula One driver Gerhard Berger to buy the Italian-registered ‘Minardi’ team from Australian billionaire and airline magnate ‘Paul Stoddart’ and rename it ‘Scuderia Toro Rosso’ (“Toro Rosso” in Italian).
Mateschitz purchased the American team ‘MetroStars’ in March 2006. The ‘SV Austria Salzburg’ and the ‘MetroStars’ were dubbed the ‘Red Bull Salzburg’ and the ‘New York Red Bulls,’ respectively, after their respective rebrandings. In 2007, ‘Red Bull’ established ‘Red Bull Brasil,’ a football team headquartered in Campinas, Brazil.
Red Bull Ghana, a professional football team and academy, was created in 2008. In 2014, it was repealed. Mateschitz created the German football team RB Leipzig in May 2009.
Mateschitz was the owner of ‘Team Red Bull,’ which participated in the ‘NASCAR Sprint Cup Series’ and the ‘K&N Pro Series East’ from 2006 to 2011. Since 2012, he has been the owner of the German ice hockey team ‘EHC München,’ also known as the ‘Red Bull München.’
‘Red Bull Records’ was founded in 2007. It was led by a former ‘Atlantic Records’ vice president. The electronic-rock band ‘Awolnation’ is the most well-known band signed to the label. ‘Red Bull’ also runs a music academy that has produced musicians and bands like ‘Flying Lotus,’ Hudson Mohawke, and Tokimonsta.’
Mateschitz is the owner of ‘Servus TV,’ an Austrian channel run by ‘Red Bull Media House.’
Mateschitz also owned ‘Seitenblicke,’ one of Austria’s most prestigious society journals. He, on the other hand, avoids the celebrity circuit in favor of watching ‘Formula One’ races on television. He has announced the creation of ‘Nä her a die Wahrheit,’ a German-language news portal that will support right-wing news.
Legal Concerns of Dietrich Mateschitz
After authorities discovered traces of cocaine in the drink, Mateschitz had to remove it from the German market. However, the business agreed to utilize coca leaves as a flavoring agent exclusively, and only after extracting the cocaine alkaloid.
The ‘Federal Institute for Risk Assessment’ in Germany decided that the level of cocaine in ‘Red Bull’ constituted no significant health risk. A 16-year-old girl died in Mexico after taking ‘Red Bull,’ according to multiple examples of ‘Red Bull’-induced hospitalizations. Then, after consuming 28 cans of the beverage every day, a woman claimed to have lost her vision.
Jyong Chul Lee, a Korean student at ‘Cape Breton University’ in Nova Scotia, was placed on probation after a brawl in the cafeteria. According to sources, he was suffering from caffeine intoxication as a result of consuming over 500–600mg of caffeine per day from ‘Red Bull,’ and thus had an emotional outburst.
In 2013, a false advertising complaint was filed against ‘Red Bull,’ alleging that the tagline “Red Bull gives you wings” was deceptive. ‘Red Bull’ settled the dispute by paying US$13 million in compensation to its American customers, as well as offering US$10–15 million in ‘Red Bull’ products.
Mateschitz’s personal opinions have also cost ‘Red Bull’ money. Several musicians and German music venues have already boycotted the event’s music academy. Due to the presence of hardline extremists, many high-profile potential interviewees have publicly declined to appear on ‘Servus TV’ programmes.
Personal & Family Life
Mateschitz was born into a family of elementary school teachers. They split up when he was a child. Mateschitz ran away from home as a teenager. Mateschitzz is an Austrian who lives in Fuschl am See and owns Laucala Island in Fiji, which he purchased from the Forbes family.
Mateschitz purchased the ‘DeepFlight Super Falcon,’ a custom-built extreme submarine, in 2013. It was intended for his Laucala Island resort guests. He is a qualified pilot and maintains a private jet airfield and hangar dedicated solely to his collection of vintage planes, which includes the ‘Falcon 900,’ ‘Piper Super Cub’ jets, and the last-ever ‘Douglas DC-6B.’ The ‘Flying Bulls,’ as he refers to his collection of vintage planes, His collection includes the North American ‘B-25J Mitchell,’ the Lockheed P-38 Lightning,’ and others, in addition to the Douglas DC-6B.
Mateschitz has never married, but he does have a son named Marc, who was born in 1992 after a two-year relationship with Anita, a former ski instructor. Marion Feichtner is Mateschitz’s current love interest.
He is one of the co-founders of the ‘Wings for Life’ foundation, which funds spinal cord research. Since 2014, the foundation has hosted the ‘Wings for Life World Run,’ a fund-raising event. Anita, Mateschitz’s former girlfriend, is the foundation’s director. Mateschitz hosts the annual ‘World Stunt Awards,’ a fundraiser for his ‘Turus Foundation,’ which helps injured stunt performers financially.
Estimated Net Worth
Dietrich Mateschitz’s net worth is about $26.9 Billion.