Red Bull supremo Dietrich Mateschitz has waved away protests at the company's side in Germany, RB Leipzig, and insisted those protesting "don't understand anything".

Mateschitz's Red Bull, who already own New York Red Bulls and Red Bull Salzburg, and have recently been linked with a £60m takeover bid for English Championship side Leeds United, founded RB Leipzig in 2009 after buying the licence of fifth-tier side SSV Markrandstadt.




Named RB Leipzig due to German rules which would not permit a corporate name, the club have risen through the divisions and now sit in the second tier in Germany, well within striking distance of the Bundesliga.

 


RB Leipzig have received criticism from a number of groups of supporters of other German clubs and protests have been held at their visits to several grounds in the 2. Bundesliga.

The protest is known as Nein zu RB (No to RB) and centres around a view held by some German fans that a corporate company should not run a team, but rather the community. Groups also protest at the use of football as a marketing tool by Red Bull.

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Mateschitz though shrugs off the criticism and told Austrian outlet Profil: "These so called hostilities are limited.

"If one wants to stretch it mathematically, then we're talking about nought point nought something per cent of all football fans.

"Known marginal groups who either don't understand anything, don't want to understand anything or have other motives.

"These kinds of incomprehensible actions only become a problem due to the fact that they are taken up by the media and are used for many a headline."

The Red Bull supremo also dismissed criticism of transfers between clubs owned by the company, saying all actions are within FIFA rules.

"It is ridiculous. First of all, we are of course tempted to make use of synergies. Who wouldn't? And secondly, all our activities with regard to this have taken place within FIFA's regulatory framework."

 


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