The supervisory board of Continental has appointed Christian Kötz as new chief executive officer and chairman of the executive board effective January 1, 2026. Nikolai Setzer will step down from the executive board by mutual agreement on December 31, 2025, after more than 16 years as a board member and five years as CEO.
Following the spin-off of Aumovio and the signing of the agreement to sell Continental’s Original Equipment Solutions (OESL) business area, preparations for the sale of ContiTech, which is scheduled to take place in 2026, have also been largely completed. The market outreach phase has been concluded, and the structured sales process will begin in January 2026.
“Nikolai Setzer has been instrumental in shaping Continental, realigning the organization and paving the way for three strong, independent companies,” said Wolfgang Reitzle, chairman of Continental’s supervisory board. “For this, he has the thanks of the entire supervisory board as well as my personal gratitude. With this handover, we are consolidating responsibility for the tire business, the realignment and the remaining tasks of the group functions in one role. Christian Kötz is one of the most distinguished managers in the global tire industry. With his extensive experience and passion for Continental, we firmly believe he is the right choice to lead the company successfully into the future.”
“In recent years, we have succeeded in transforming a diverse portfolio of businesses into three strong, independent champions. After 28 years at Continental, now is the right time for me to hand over responsibility to Christian Kötz,” said Nikolai Setzer. “I’m extremely grateful for the journey we’ve all shared and proud of what we’ve all achieved together. I firmly believe that the tire business, ContiTech, Aumovio and OESL have a promising future ahead.”
“I would like to thank the supervisory board for its trust and am excited about this new responsibility,” said Christian Kötz. “Continental has been my professional home for three decades. Together with the executive board team and all colleagues throughout the company, we will complete the realignment and continue the success story of our tire business.”
Kötz has held various roles in Continental’s tire business since 1996. He has been a member of the executive board since 2019 and previously led key areas within the Tires group sector, including the replacement business for passenger-car tires (EMEA), the original-equipment and commercial-vehicle-tire business units, as well as global R&D for passenger-car tires.
