Audi have sold a minority stake in their Formula 1 team to Qatar as the Arab world’s involvement with F1 continues to grow.

The German manufacturer has relinquished a reported 30% of their stake in the F1 team to the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) in a deal thought to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Audi sell portion of F1 team to Qatar

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

Audi has not even reached the grid yet with Sauber continuing to run until 2026 as Stake but the German manufacturing giant has been busy behind the scenes preparing for its F1 debut.

Adding to a number of staff hires and the refurbishment of their Neuburg base, Audi have now attracted a significant partner in the form of QIA which has a portfolio of assets estimated to be worth $475 billion.

Sky News reports that the deal is for roughly 30% of the team and is worth hundreds of millions of dollars, suggesting the full value of the F1 team is close to the $1 billion mark.

Gernot Döllner, CEO of AUDI AG and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Sauber Motorsport AG, said: “The investment by QIA reflects the trust and confidence the Audi F1 Project has already garnered, underscoring unwavering commitment of Audi to the initiative.

“This additional capital will accelerate the team’s growth and is yet another milestone on our long-term strategy. QIA’s involvement further energises the dedicated efforts at both the Hinwil and Neuburg facilities as they work towards the entry of Audi in 2026.”

Mohammed Al-Sowaidi, CEO of QIA, said: “Audi is a premium partner of choice with a rich motorsport legacy. As a long-standing investor in the Volkswagen Group, we believe in Audi’s vision and direction when entering Formula 1 and our investment will support the realisation of this goal.

“QIA believes that Formula 1 is a sport with significant untapped investment potential. The increasing commercialisation of professional sports as an entertainment offering globally, and the increasingly global popularity of Formula 1, has made for an exciting opportunity for our first major motorsports investment.”

Qatar’s acquisition of a portion of Audi will be of concern to many with continued concerns centred on the country’s human rights record.

Amnesty International said in 2023 that Qatar continues to restrict the right to freedom of expression and silence critical voices while migrant workers continued to face a range of abuses, including wage theft, forced labour and exploitation, and had inadequate access to grievance and redress mechanisms. Women also continued to face discrimination in law and practice and discriminatory laws put LGBTI people at risk of detention.

Even before this latest acquisition, Arab nations already had a significant interest in F1 with McLaren being owned by the sovereign wealth fund of Bahrain and Aston Martin having Saudi Arabian oil company Aramco as a title partner.

It is not just team ownership where Middle Eastern countries have taken interest either as there has been a sustained push to get more races in the region. Bahrain has been on the schedule continuously since 2012 while Saudi Arabia joined in 2021 and Qatar in the same year.

Formula 1 is not the only sport to become the desire of Arab nations either and the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Newcastle United all have owners from that region of the world. The Saudi Arabian backed LIV Golf was launched in 2022 as a rival to the PGA tour.

The country also hosted the 2022 FIFA World Cup, won by Argentina, and hosts a number of boxing events.

Read next: Sacked F1 steward makes FIA president claim over swearing clampdown