Christian Horner is joining Oakley Capital as a special adviser on investments in premium sports, adding a new role outside Formula 1 as he continues to look for a way back into the championship. The move places one of the sport’s most recognisable figures inside a firm already active across sailing, padel and golf.
Oakley said Horner will advise on investments in premium sports as it expands a portfolio that includes Athena Racing, which is challenging for the America’s Cup, alongside padel and golf brands. The timing matters because Horner is actively seeking a route back into Formula 1 and is keen to become a shareholder in a team, making any fresh business ties in sport closely watched in f1 news circles.
Peter Dubens, Oakley Capital’s founder and managing partner, said Horner is widely recognised as a highly successful leader in global sport. He said Horner’s track record, expertise and commercial instinct will be invaluable as the firm continues to scale its sports portfolio. Dubens added that Oakley is increasingly drawn to businesses that fit its model of founder-led, high-growth companies with resilient revenues or scarce assets with untapped potential.
Horner said he has known and respected Dubens and the Oakley team for many years, and said he has always admired the firm’s approach to building ambitious, founder-led businesses. He said Oakley has built a strong reputation across the sports and consumer landscape and said he looks forward to working together and sharing his experience to help support the next generation of standout sports businesses.
The appointment lands after a week in which Horner was reported to have held serious discussions with BYD of China over a possible 12th Formula 1 team. His focus, however, remains on trying to secure the 24% stake Otro Capital is looking to offload in Alpine, with a consortium he has put together understood to have the money for the deal. That gives his new advisory role at Oakley a second layer: it is both a fresh business post and another signal that Horner’s return to the grid may come through ownership rather than the pit wall.
For Oakley, the hire brings in a high-profile figure with deep knowledge of elite sport at a time when investment interest is spreading beyond traditional team ownership. For Horner, it offers a platform in a sector he says is growing as global audiences expand and more people embrace healthier, active lifestyles. The next test is whether that commercial momentum can translate into a concrete Formula 1 stake, or even a pathway into a 12th F1 team, while he builds influence elsewhere in sport.
