FIA president facing legal action in scathing attack for ‘distinct failure’ of governing body

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been on the receiving end of a full-throated dismantling of his conduct and performance at the helm of the motorsport governing body - and the threat of legal action.

David Richards, a former F1 team principal and current chairman of Motorsport UK, the United Kingdom's national racing authority and member of the FIA, has penned a letter to members of the body after what calls the "final straw".

Last week, Richards, some FIA officials, including deputy president of sport Robert Reid, and other World Motor Sport Council members were prevented from attending a WMSC meeting because of their refusal to sign a non-disclosure agreement.

In the open and forthright letter, the 72-year-old referred to the demand of a new confidentiality agreement as a "gagging order" whilst outlining key election promises he feels Ben Sulayem has failed to fulfil since taking over the role in 2021.

"For some time now I've had concerns about the erosion of accountability and good governance within the FIA," Richards said in the letter to explain his writing of it.

"As you may have seen in the press, an issue has recently emerged that has compelled me to take a stand and needs an explanation."

The Briton highlighted that Motorsport UK voted for Ben Sulayem in the 2021 election, not the British candidate Graham Stoker, outlining three core principles for doing so.

In summary, those were: "A hands-off president" who would "delegate the day-to-day running of the FIA to a professional executive team", and the "appointment of an empowered and capable CEO", as well as "full transparency of actions and the highest standards of sporting governance."

The 'gagging order' confidentiality issue

Natalie Robyn was appointed CEO of the FIA in 2022, but left after just 18 months in May 2024.

"I'm afraid that over the last three years there has been a distinct failure to meet these promises," Richards added. "In fact, the situation has progressively worsened with media reports confirming that numerous senior members of the FIA and volunteer officials have either been fired or have resigned under an opaque cloud.

“Furthermore, the scope of the Audit and Ethics Committees has been severely limited and now lacks autonomy from the authority of the president, while our UK representative, who challenged certain matters, was summarily removed along with the chair of the Audit Committee.

"Various techniques have also been deployed with the effect of limiting the proper function of the World Motor Sport Council, primarily the use of e-voting which removes the opportunity for much needed discussion and debate on key subjects.

"This has become increasingly worrying and the final straw for me, three weeks ago, was being asked to sign a new confidentiality agreement that I regarded as a 'gagging order’."

Richards pointed out that he signed a confidentiality agreement when he was appointed to the WMSC in 2021.

"However, the new confidentiality agreement went far further than this and, at a week's notice, I was told that if I didn't sign it, I would be barred from the next World Motor Sport Council meeting," wrote Richards.

He objected to the development on three grounds. Firstly that "everything was now considered confidential, without qualification", also that the FIA could unilaterally decide "if anyone breached the terms of the new confidentiality agreement" with no due process and the addition of an "immediate fine of €50,000 for any breach" plus the "threat" of further damages.

Richards continued: "The construction of this new confidentiality agreement does not comply with the Statutes of the FIA and contradicts the promise of transparent governance we had voted for.

"I therefore asked that we debate the matter at the World Motor Sport Council, which was just days away, rather than having it forced upon us as a condition of attendance.

"My request, along with those of a few other members who shared our views, was denied and we were barred from attending the meeting.

"This was in total breach of the FIA statutes that require all elected members be given full access to meetings. I should point out that I kept the Board of Motorsport UK fully informed throughout to ensure that I had their complete support.

"Our Motorsport UK lawyers, along with our French Legal Counsel, have challenged the FIA on their actions by setting out a clear set of questions that the FIA leadership needs to answer.

"It is very disappointing to report that we have still not received an answer to these or the fundamental question I raised: where in the FIA Statutes does it provide for an elected member to be barred from a meeting?"

The threat of legal action

Richards maintains he remains "open to signing an appropriately revised confidentiality agreement" but insists certain issues need to be addressed first.

"No-one, least of all myself, would dispute the fact that certain matters must be treated as confidential and sensitive for external release," he explained.

"However, we should not allow that basic truth to be misused in order to create a blanket gagging order on volunteer representatives on the various crucial Councils and Committees, this is not how a member-owned and driven organisation should behave."

He goes on to highlight the undermining of Robert Reid and his ability to carry out the role he was elected to.

"This includes being denied access to materials, banned from meetings and even attending World Championship events. Again, this is not what we voted for," Richards wrote.

He concludes by detailing why Motorsport UK is threatening legal action. "These actions by the FIA are in breach of their own Statutes," the letter said.

"As a result, we have informed the FIA that unless they address the issues we've raised, we will be engaging in further legal action.

"In a year when the President will either be re-elected or a new one appointed, it is more important than ever to remind the FIA of their responsibilities and continue to hold them to account on behalf of the sport and their members worldwide, and that's what I intend to do."