Austrian billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz, co-owner of Red Bull energy drink, died Saturday at age 78, the company’s F1 team confirmed.
There is no word on the cause of death or where he died. But sources say Mateschitz was in poor health in recent weeks.
Mateschitz was a salesman for Procter & Gamble in the 1980s when he discovered a tonic in Thailand that would later become Red Bull.
Mateschitz and co-founder, Thai Chaleo Yoovidhya, launched the Red Bull brand in 1987, eventually growing it into the world’s biggest energy drink. Red Bull sold nearly 10 billion cans in 172 countries worldwide last year. Mateschitz reportedly earned $25 billion in profits.
He sank millions of dollars into his passion: extreme sports. Red Bull became a sponsor in many sports and a 60% shareholder in a Formula 1 racing team that became the fastest team in F1 by 2009.
“It’s very, very sad, what a great man,” said Red Bull’s team principal Christian Horner.
“What he achieved and what he has done for so many people, around the world in different sports, is second to none.”
Red Bull and other caffeinated energy drinks have been linked to heart disturbances and deaths if consumed in large quantities.
Fans of image consultant Kevin Samuels believe Red Bull contributed to his death.
Samuels was a popular YouTube blogger with over 1 million subscribers when he died suddenly on May 5 of a cardiac arrest while entertaining a lady friend.
His fans warned him repeatedly about drinking too much Red Bulls in his YouTube videos.
