Nocturnal 
Christian Horner’s payout from Red Bull after his sacking has been put at more than £67million, according to the team’s financial report.
The document lists the figure as “compensation for loss of office”, alongside a separate remuneration sum of £9.029million and “company contributions to money purchase pension schemes” of £10,000.
The 52-year-old was axed as Red Bull team principal and chief executive in July, following years of on-track success giving way to a slump in form and growing tension behind the scenes. It brought an end to his 20-year spell in charge, during which he led the team to eight drivers’ championships and six constructors’ titles.
His contract had been due to run until 2030, meaning Red Bull faced negotiating a severance deal rather than simply walking away. Horner has since said he had six years left on that contract at the time he was dismissed.
Why the figures keep changing
The £67million figure in the financial report is just the latest in a series of wildly different sums reported since Horner’s departure. BBC Sport said a source close to the team put the settlement at 60million euros, around £52million, while the Daily Mail reported 92million euros, equivalent to roughly £80million. Motorsport website The Race put the figure at $100million, or about £74million.
As the BBC’s Andrew Benson pointed out at the time, nobody outside Red Bull, Horner and their respective lawyers can be entirely sure of the exact terms. The UK think-tank the High Pay Centre described a payout of that size as “extraordinarily large” even by the standards of Europe’s biggest companies, adding that handing over such a large lump sum in cash was “a very casual way to spend an enormous sum of money”.
Whatever the true figure, reports at the time suggested the vast majority would be taxed at the 45 per cent additional rate, potentially leaving Horner with a take-home sum far below the headline number.
Horner’s exit followed accusations of “inappropriate behaviour” made by a female Red Bull colleague in early 2024, which he has always strongly denied. He was cleared twice, after investigations carried out by two external KCs. His accuser, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is reported to have left Red Bull and taken up a role at another F1 outfit after accepting a payout said to be worth £3million, according to the Mirror citing the Daily Mail.
What happens next
Horner has been replaced as team principal and chief executive by Laurent Mekies, promoted from sister squad Racing Bulls. Red Bull’s form has picked up since the summer break, with Max Verstappen finishing in the top two in four consecutive races and keeping the team in contention for places in both championships.
Horner’s settlement is understood to include a period of gardening leave, which could allow him to return to F1 with another team as early as the 2026 season. He has already made clear he’d like to come back to the paddock, telling Sky Sports at the British Grand Prix: “I would like to come back but it may be the autumn or next spring before anything happens.”
He has reportedly held “exploratory talks” with Haas, though team principal Ayao Komatsu has downplayed any imminent move, while Aston Martin has also been mentioned as a potential destination. For now, Horner remains out of F1, watching from the sidelines as the team he spent two decades building moves on without him.
