Red Bull Athletic Performance Center: This is how the athlete factory works

Since Red Bull signed Jürgen Klopp on Wednesday, the drinks manufacturer’s empire has been the center of attention again. As “Head of Global Soccer,” Klopp will lead the global soccer network with seven soccer clubs. The engagement of the successful trainer is an essential building block in the development of the Austrian beverage company’s sports business area, which Oliver Mintzlaff is responsible for.

Red Bull has also had strategic approaches to systematically improve performance for individual athletes for many years. They are based on sports medicine and diagnostic findings. And are being implemented in the province.

Only 6,000 residents live in the municipality of Thalgau in Salzburg’s Flachgau. Here Red Bull operates its Athlete Performance Center (APC) almost to the exclusion of the public. When asked, those responsible at the APC preferred to talk about athletes and not about the facility itself, they said.

Nevertheless, numerous details about the facility are known. The English name sums up its purpose: The athletes, who are under contract as advertising partners with the beverage company based in nearby Fuschl, should be looked after professionally and comprehensively. Whether you want to improve your performance or get back to your original performance level after an injury.

Like many things at Red Bull, the APC in its original form goes back to an idea by co-owner and mastermind Dietrich Mateschitz, who died almost two years ago. The marketing genius Mateschitz knew about the fine line between success and failure in sport and, among other things, offered his athletes the most modern sports science support. Like many other projects, Mateschitz personally pursued the implementation with his characteristic perfectionism and financial generosity.

The best for the best athletes; knowing full well that they are contributing to the Red Bull brand with their successes and the associated positive image transfer.

Because of the 1:1 care, the capacity in Thalgau is limited to 35 guests

More than fifty employees work in the performance diagnostics and training center, including doctors, physiotherapists, nutritionists, trainers and mental coaches. The center has its own blood laboratory and training equipment specially designed for individual sports. The supervisors can access a huge amount of data in order to continuously optimize the training work in almost real time. The many experts all work on site and network for the athletes. The supervision ratio is 1:1, each athlete receives individual care at all times. That’s why capacity in Thalgau is currently limited to around 35 guests.

None of the Red Bull stars are obliged to use the comprehensive service portfolio. The APC sees itself as a non-profit service center for athletes, which is 100 percent owned by Red Bull GmbH. The cycling professionals from the Bora Red Bull team around the Slovenian Primoz Roglic are among the guests, as are the Red Bull Formula 1 drivers and the Swiss ski star Marco Odermatt and the track and field athlete Simon Ehammer.

Olympic champions and world champions regularly meet in the facility. The fact that they can exchange ideas with like-minded people from other disciplines during training or rehabilitation is described by the athletes as another special feature of the APC.

 

Registration is usually required two to three weeks in advance. In acute cases such as injuries, the lead time is shorter. The APC also has a branch in Santa Monica, California, and a total of 600 individual athletes are looked after. The football and ice hockey teams have their own specific facilities.

Athletes like the Austrian ski jumper Daniel Tschofenig, who have already completed several stays at the APC, rave about the professionalism of the all-round support, the innovative spirit that can be felt everywhere and the family feel-good atmosphere. “If possible, you always get the same people at each station,” says Tschofenig. “You feel comfortable, get new ideas and when you leave you have the feeling that you have developed further.” The average length of stay is three days, but in special cases it can extend over several weeks.

To start with a blood check, the program via QR code

After check-in, the athletes don’t have to worry about anything other than choosing the menu. All athletes in the center are listed by name and with a QR code on a large screen. After scanning the QR code, you will be guided through the individual daily program using a web application. The routine checks usually begin with an analysis from the blood laboratory, then the doctors and physiotherapists look at the physical condition before the comprehensive individual coaching program begins.

There is full transparency towards the athletes’ external supervisors and there is regular communication. The guests are accommodated in APC partner companies in the region.

 

The training center is located in a former tin alloy factory in Thalgau. Because of its individual focus on its guests, it is known as the Red Bull Athletes’ Mill. The laboratory and medical diagnostic facilities are located in a former stable building on the site. In contrast to the ultra-modern interior, the external appearance of the APC is so simple and inconspicuous that it is hard to believe that you are standing in front of a company from the Red Bull universe. The diagnostic and training methods are naturally always at the cutting edge of science and research.

A three-day symposium entitled “The Athlete Performance Summit 2024” will take place in Munich in mid-November. The latest findings in sports medicine and diagnostics are exchanged in order to make athletes and teams successful. The program ranges from a knee session to contributions on genetics and stem cells to data management and artificial intelligence in sports medicine.