Red Bull is a big name in the action sports industry. This is also the case in the music scene - but resistance is forming against the Austrian drinks giant and its boss. Partly because of an interview by CEO Dietrich Mateschitz, the Zurich club Zukunft is pulling out of its collaboration with Red Bull.

But right from the start: On April 8, 2017, "Kleine Zeitung" published one of the rare interviews with Red Bull CEO Dietrich Mateschitz. Mateschitz expresses his sympathy for Donald Trump, and the Red Bull boss describes Austria's refugee policy as a failure. The billionaire also accuses the media of dictating opinion and takes issue with political correctness.The Red Bull TV channel ServusTV is not free of right-wing tendencies either: The discussion program "Talk in Hangar-7" has already hosted Martin Sellner (Identitarian Movement Austria), Stefan Magnet (author of the far-right magazine Info Direkt) and Martin Lichtmesz (author of the new-right magazine Sezession). ServusTV is owned by Red Bull Media House GmbH, a subsidiary of Red Bull GmbH.

Artistic excitement vs. the far right

Inside the music scene, the Red Bull Music Academy has been active for 20 years and has a massive influence on the music industry with ten music studios worldwide, its own music radio station and numerous festivals and concerts. The focus of Red Bull's activities in the music sector is not on commerce, but on supporting projects that are artistically exciting. In October, for example, a Red Bull Music Event was scheduled in Berlin, in which the artist collective Live From Earth surprisingly canceled its participation. In a statement on Instagram, Live From Earth explains its reasons: At the heart of this, he says, is that Mateschitz is not making any further statements about his right-wing populist remarks and that the Red Bull Group is tolerating the impression of the CEO as a right-wing populist.

Recently, the Zurich club Zukunft also canceled its involvement with Red Bull. However, the upcoming 20 Years of Red Bull Music Academy event is still going ahead. However, the club's organizers will no longer ride the cooperation with the Red Bull Music Academy from 2019 and will stop serving Red Bull drinks. On Facebook there is a detailed statement on the decision and the reasons for it. The focus is on Mateschitz's "xenophobic and right-wing populist rhetoric". "This contradicts our principles. Club culture - the way we try to live it - is a vehicle for diversity," said the Zukunft organizers on Facebook. As the club operators also announced on the social media channel, contact with Mateschitz has been sought in vain and no statement has been received from Red Bull headquarters either.

Important player in the sport of mountain biking

Red Bull is an extremely important player in the sport of mountain biking. For example, Red Bull Media House GmbH produces the highly acclaimed freeride spectacle Rampage. The same company also broadcasts the Cross Country and Downhill World Cup. The Austrian energy drink pioneer is also responsible for the Pump Track World Championship, which was held for the first time in 2018. World-famous mountain bikers such as Danny MacAskill, Fabio Widmer and René Wildhaber ride with the Red Bull banner on their helmets.