Wolff Preparing to Sell Shareholding Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal estimates the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of ownership structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds a 33% stake of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
Wolff, aged 53 would stay on as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Shareholder Breakdown
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and each shareholder are dedicated to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal would represent a substantial rise in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at the box office.
The film represents Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, trailing McLaren, with three races remaining this season.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.
