Toto Wolff Set to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team boss and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the enterprise.
An official representative said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unchanged, and all three partners are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
This arrangement would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.
This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports film to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.
Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has won two of the 21 races this year and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
