Ex-Diageo CEO Paul Walsh left out of F1

Mystery surrounds the former Diageo CEO Paul Walsh after it has emerged that he didn’t take up a boardroom role at the head of Formula 1, despite his appointment being announced in December.

Paul Walsh led Diageo, the world’s biggest alcoholic drinks company, for over 12 years (Photo: Diageo)

Walsh was expected to become a director of the Formula 1 Group after CVC Capital, the sport’s biggest shareholder, gave a statement at the end of last year saying he would join the boardroom.

CVC Capital said in December that Walsh, who led Diageo from 2000 to 2013, would join Formula 1 as non-executive director on January 1 this year. However, this statement has now disappeared from the CVC website.

Sky News says its sources confirmed yesterday that Walsh had not joined the Formula 1 Group, and that he was now not expected to do so. CVC, a private equity firm that owns a 35.5% stake in Formula 1, declined to comment.

The revelation comes just weeks after Walsh was deselected as a contender to head the CBI – influential British industry body representing the interests of large employers – because of his perceived links to the Conservative party in the UK.

He was a signatory to an open letter published in the Telegraph at the beginning of May from business leaders supporting the Conservatives ahead of their election win the following week.

At the time, the CBI told the Financial Times that it is “a politically neutral organisation and its senior post-holders will always act impartially.”