Wolff Preparing to Sell Shareholding Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630 million (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
