Toto Wolff Set to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
The deal values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
The other shareholders in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative stated: "We are providing no comment on the matter. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the increasing appeal of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Current Standings
Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a record eight consecutive team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
