Dietrich Mateschitz facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dietrich Mateschitz
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| Born | 20 May 1944 |
| Died | 22 October 2022 (aged 78) St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut, Upper Austria, Republic of Austria
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| Education | Vienna University of Economics and Business |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Known for | Co-founding Red Bull GmbH |
| Children | Mark Mateschitz |
Dietrich Mateschitz (born May 20, 1944 – died October 22, 2022) was a very rich Austrian businessman. He was the person who helped start and owned almost half of Red Bull GmbH. In 2022, his wealth was estimated to be around US$27.4 billion.
Before Red Bull, Mateschitz worked in marketing for big companies like Unilever. While traveling in Thailand, he found a drink called Krating Daeng. He liked it so much that he decided to make his own version, which became Red Bull. He started Red Bull GmbH in 1984 and launched it in Austria in 1987. His company later bought or created many sports teams around the world. These include the famous Red Bull Racing and AlphaTauri in Formula One. He also owned football teams like FC Red Bull Salzburg and RB Leipzig.
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Early life and education
Dietrich Mateschitz was born on May 20, 1944. His birthplace was Sankt Marein im Mürztal, a town in Styria, Austria. His parents were both school teachers. He had some family roots in Slovenia or Croatia.
He went to the Hochschule für Welthandel, which is now called the Vienna University of Economics and Business. It took him ten years to finish his marketing degree, which he got in 1972. From a young age, he was very interested in extreme sports.
Career
Mateschitz's first job was at Unilever, where he helped sell cleaning products. After that, he worked for Blendax, a German cosmetics company. There, he helped market their toothpaste. During his travels for Blendax, he discovered the drink that would change his life.
He was flying from Bangkok airport when he bought a bottle of Krating Daeng. He later said that "one glass [of Krating Daeng] and the jet lag was gone." He saw a great chance to sell this kind of drink in Europe. So, Mateschitz teamed up with a Thai businessman named Chaleo Yoovidhya. Yoovidhya was already selling Krating Daeng successfully to truck drivers and factory workers.
In 1984, Mateschitz and Yoovidhya started Red Bull GmbH together. They launched the Red Bull drink in Austria in 1987. After that, Red Bull became the world's top-selling energy drink. It took about three years to perfect the drink's formula before it was launched.
Mateschitz also owned Seitenblicke, a popular magazine in Austria. He preferred to stay out of the spotlight himself. He even watched most Formula One races on TV, even though he owned two teams. In 2007, he started Media House in Austria. This company provided lots of digital entertainment and images to TV channels. He also owned ServusTV, a TV channel based in Salzburg.
Sports
Red Bull's marketing often connects its brand with extreme sports. These include activities like surfing, skydiving, and mountain biking. Red Bull is known for its creative and intense marketing of these sports. A famous example is the Red Bull Stratos project in 2012. In this project, Felix Baumgartner skydived from the edge of space. This event was a huge success for Red Bull's marketing.
Motorsport
Red Bull used to own more than 60% of the Sauber Formula One team. They were also the team's main sponsor. But Red Bull ended its partnership with Sauber in 2001. This happened because Sauber chose a different driver, Kimi Räikkönen, over Red Bull's preferred driver.
In November 2004, Mateschitz bought the Jaguar Racing Formula One team from Ford. He renamed it Red Bull Racing for the 2005 season. The price he paid was not made public. Red Bull hired Christian Horner as the team boss. They also brought in Adrian Newey, a top design engineer, for a large salary.
In September 2005, Mateschitz and his friend Gerhard Berger bought the Minardi team. This team became a junior team for Red Bull Racing. It was renamed Scuderia Toro Rosso in 2006, and later AlphaTauri in 2020.
Sebastian Vettel won a race for Toro Rosso in 2008. His win at the 2009 Chinese Grand Prix was the first for Red Bull Racing. In 2010, Red Bull Racing won the Formula One World Constructors' Championship. Vettel also won the Drivers' Championship that year. They continued to win both titles for the next three years (2011, 2012, and 2013).
Eight years later, Max Verstappen won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship for Red Bull in 2021. Red Bull finished second in the Constructors' Championship that year. In 2022, Verstappen won his title again. This was the sixth driver's title for a Red Bull driver. Red Bull had a tough time winning championships for about eight years before 2021. This was partly due to changes in engine rules in 2014. But they made a big comeback in 2021 and 2022 with Honda engines.
From 2006 to 2011, Mateschitz also owned Team Red Bull. This team competed in NASCAR races.
In late 2004, he bought the A1-Ring racing track. This track used to host the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix. He renamed it the Red Bull Ring. The track reopened in May 2011. In 2013, Red Bull announced that the Austrian Grand Prix would return to Formula One in 2014.
Football and ice hockey
In April 2005, Mateschitz bought the Austrian football club SV Austria Salzburg. In March 2006, he bought the American club MetroStars. Both clubs were renamed after his famous drink. They became Red Bull Salzburg and New York Red Bulls. In 2007, Red Bull started Red Bull Brasil, a football team in Brazil. In 2019, they bought another Brazilian club, Clube Atlético Bragantino. In 2008, Red Bull started Red Bull Ghana, a football academy in Ghana.
In May 2009, he started a German football club called RB Leipzig. He bought the license from another club to play in a lower league. The team quickly moved up to the top German league, the Bundesliga, in 2016. They reached the UEFA Champions League semi-finals in 2020. They also won the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) in 2022.
He also owned two ice hockey clubs: EC Red Bull Salzburg and EHC Red Bull München. These clubs were bought and rebranded in 2000 and 2012.
Philanthropy
Mateschitz helped start the Wings for Life foundation. This foundation supports research into spinal cord injuries. He co-founded it with Heinz Kinigadner. Since 2014, the foundation has held the Wings for Life World Run to raise money.
Mateschitz personally gave 70 million euros to Paracelsus Medical University. This money was for a research center focused on spinal cord injuries.
He also started the Taurus World Stunt Awards. This is an annual event that raises money for his Taurus Foundation. The foundation helps stunt professionals who have been injured.
Personal life and death
Dietrich Mateschitz never married. He had one son named Mark, who was born in May 1992. When Dietrich died, his son was a managing director of one of his investment companies. Mateschitz rarely gave interviews and kept his personal life private. He was known for being simple, often wearing jeans and sunglasses. He had a long-term partner named Marion Feichtner.
He had a pilot's license and enjoyed flying his planes. He owned Hangar-7, a special hangar with a collection of old planes. One of these planes was a Douglas DC-6B that once belonged to Marshal Josip Broz Tito.
Mateschitz lived in Fuschl am See, Austria. He also owned the island of Laucala in Fiji, which he bought for £7 million. He spent millions buying and taking care of old houses and castles in the Austrian Alps. He said he wanted to enjoy these places and also preserve them.
He died on October 22, 2022, at his home in St. Wolfgang im Salzkammergut. He was 78 years old and had been fighting pancreatic cancer for a long time.
See also
In Spanish: Dietrich Mateschitz para niños
