Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in final negotiations to offload part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following the McLaren team were valued at £3.5 billion in a change of corporate structure last September.
Wolff, who holds one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a shareholding approximately five percent.
The 53-year-old would stay on as team boss and CEO should the deal proceed.
Ownership Structure
The other shareholders in the team are Mercedes and industrial group Ineos Group, who both hold one-third of the company.
An official representative said: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in F1."
Financial Increase
The deal signifies a significant increase in value of Mercedes F1 after Ineos bought its share for £208 million in 2022.
This surge demonstrates the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the increasing appeal of Formula 1 globally.
This was also seen in the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned over $630 million (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film to date.
Current Performance
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races left in the current championship.
Their lead driver George Russell has won two of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a record eight straight team titles and seven drivers' titles, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
