Even before turning its first lap in Formula 1, Audi has reportedly agreed to sell a minor stake in the F1 team to the Qatar sovereign wealth fund.

Having purchased the Sauber team, Audi will rebrand the Formula 1 in 2026 when the German manufacturer takes over as a full works team with the cars powered by an Audi engine.

Audi F1 have ‘reached an agreement’ to sell a minority stake in the F1 team

According to Auto Motor und Sport, the Qatar sovereign wealth fund, which already owns shares in Volkswagen and Porsche, have ‘already reached an agreement’ with Audi to acquire ‘a minority stake’ in the Formula 1 team.

The investment raised would go towards expanding the team’s Hinwil facilities, both in terms of infrastructure and also personnel with Audi facing a bigger wage bill than its F1 rivals.

That’s also an issue when it comes to the budget cap, although Audi has already been given the go-ahead to operate at a higher ceiling in F1 2026 with the FIA granting leeway to teams operating in countries with higher salaries.

That applies to Audi, who will be based in Hinwil in Switzerland where salaries are as much as 40 per cent higher than in England or Italy where all the other teams are based.

As yet the exact figure Audi will be allowed has not been revealed.

The Qatar investment means Audi can draw on those funds, rather than tap into the budget from Germany.

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This is by no means the first step towards selling the F1 team with Audi reiterating its commitment earlier this year.

Managing Director Gernot Döllner said: “The decision was well prepared two and a half years ago and re-evaluated last year. We are firmly convinced that Formula 1 and Audi are a perfect match. It is in line with our strategy.”

Sky Deutschland pundit and former F1 driver Ralf Schumacher believes the pending Qatar deal is one of the reasons Audi chose Gabriel Bortoleto as Nico Hulkenberg’s 2025 team-mate, instead of Mick Schumacher.

“Rumour has it that a part of the team will be sold to Qatar for economic reasons,” he said. “This is one of the reasons why it was ultimately Bortoleto.

“I think the combination of him as a young talent and the experienced Nico Hulkenberg is good.”

Some racing teams have begun to literally capitalise on the development and sell shares. In June 2023, for example, Alpine announced that it had sold 24 per cent of the team to a group of investors including actor Ryan Reynolds, golfer Rory McIlroy, boxer Anthony Joshua and NFL stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce.

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