Wolff Set to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for an F1 team – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who holds one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, 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.
Shareholder Breakdown
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the company.
An official representative stated: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in F1."
Financial Growth
This arrangement would represent a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos Group acquired its share for £208m in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport around the world.
This trend was evident with the success of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the most successful sports movie ever released.
Present Standings
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
