Wolff Preparing to Sell Stake Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5 billion in a change of ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of the team will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."
Valuation Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208m in 2022.
This surge reflects the growth in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie starring Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix remaining this season.
Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.
