Wolff Set to Sell Shareholding Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion
Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell a portion of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.
Shareholder Structure
Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no comment on the matter. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Increase
The deal signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise reflects the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.
This was also seen in the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the most successful sports film ever released.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the team standings, behind McLaren, with three races remaining this season.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.
Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.
