Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team was appraised at £3.5 billion in an adjustment to corporate structure in September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a stake in the region of five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes-Benz and chemicals giant Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We are providing no official statement on the matter. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."
Financial Growth
The deal signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in market values of Formula 1 outfits recently due to the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the F1 movie featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful movie and the highest-earning sports movie ever released.
Current Performance
Mercedes are second in the constructors' championship, behind McLaren Racing, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has secured victory in 2 of the 21 races so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes won a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
