Continental AG Appoints Christian Kötz as CEO

Continental AG has appointed Christian Kötz as its new chief executive officer (CEO) and chairman of the executive board, effective Jan. 1, 2026. Continental said this marks a pivotal leadership transition as the company completes its transformation into a pure-play tire manufacturer.

Kötz succeeds Nikolai Setzer, who will step down from the Executive Board on Dec. 31, following more than 16 years as a board member and five years as CEO.

The leadership change comes at a moment of structural clarity for Continental. The company has already spun off Aumovio, signed an agreement to sell its Original Equipment Solutions (OESL) business, and completed market outreach ahead of the planned sale of ContiTech in 2026. With these milestones largely in place, the supervisory board determined the timing was right to hand over leadership as Continental enters its final phase of realignment.

Setzer has been clear that his tenure as CEO was tied directly to reshaping Continental’s portfolio. In a joint interview released by the company, he explained that the transition was always intended to follow meaningful progress toward becoming a focused tire company.

With the heavy structural work completed or underway, he described his mission as fulfilled.

Kötz echoed that assessment, framing the handover as a relay rather than a pause point. Rather than waiting for the formal sale of ContiTech to close, he emphasized the importance of maintaining momentum as Continental prepares to operate independently as a tire-focused enterprise. The groundwork, he said, has already been laid.

Kötz brings nearly three decades of experience inside Continental’s tire operations. He joined the company in 1996 and has held a range of leadership roles across the Tires group, including responsibility for the passenger and light truck replacement business in EMEA, original equipment and commercial vehicle tires, and global passenger tire research and development. He has served on Continental’s Executive Board since 2019.

That background was a key factor in the Supervisory Board’s decision. Chairman Wolfgang Reitzle described Kötz as one of the most experienced leaders in the global tire industry, citing both his operational depth and long-standing connection to Continental’s culture. Consolidating responsibility for the tire business, remaining group functions, and the final steps of the company’s transformation under a single CEO was seen as critical to executing the next phase.

Strategic Priorities as CEO

Looking ahead, Kötz’s priorities center on preparing Continental for life as an independent, listed tire company while maintaining competitiveness in a tightening global market. In the interview, he pointed to the company’s resilient and profitable tire business as a key advantage, particularly its strong position in the replacement market, which reduces exposure to volatility tied to new vehicle production.

Structurally, Continental plans to sharpen its focus on three core regions – EMEA, the Americas, and APAC – while continuing to manage original equipment and specialty tire segments globally. Kötz said this balance between regional accountability and global coordination will be essential as competitive pressures increase, particularly from low-cost tire manufacturers expanding into Europe and North America.

Maintaining Continental’s premium positioning will remain central to the strategy. Kötz emphasized continued investment in technology, productivity, and cost discipline, alongside preserving the company’s corporate culture. Preparing the organization for independence following the sale of ContiTech, including the integration of remaining group functions into the tire organization, will be one of his earliest operational priorities.

Both Setzer and Kötz stressed continuity as a defining feature of the transition. The two executives have worked closely together for years, and Kötz pointed to long-term preparation behind the scenes to ensure a seamless handover. That continuity extends beyond strategy to leadership style. Kötz described his approach as grounded in close collaboration with employees and customers, a deep personal passion for tire development and manufacturing, and a strong sense of responsibility tied to the role.

Setzer, reflecting on his nearly 28-year career at Continental, pointed to the collective effort behind the company’s transformation rather than any single achievement. He described the creation of multiple independent business “champions” as the defining outcome of his time as CEO and expressed confidence in Continental’s future under Kötz’s leadership.

As Continental moves toward completing its transformation, the appointment of Kötz signals a shift from structural change to operational execution, it said. With the portfolio largely reshaped and independence on the horizon, the focus now turns to competitiveness, efficiency and sustained performance in a global tire market facing moderate growth and intensifying competition.

Continental said the CEO transition represents less a change in direction than a change in emphasis, moving from restructuring to running a newly focused tire business at full speed, with leadership deeply rooted in the segment it now fully embraces.