Wolff Set to Divest Stake Pricing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6 Billion

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – a record for an F1 team – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure in September.

Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately 5%.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and chief executive officer should the deal proceed.

Shareholder Structure

Remaining partners in Mercedes F1 are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold a third of the company.

An official representative stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The governance of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in F1."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in value of the Mercedes team after Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.

This surge reflects the growth in valuations of F1 teams recently as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 globally.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the Formula 1 film starring Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and has grossed over $630 million (£458m) at the box office.

It is the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports movie to date.

Present Performance

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining this season.

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has won 2 of the 21 grands prix this year and is fourth in the individual standings after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

The team won a record eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven driver championships, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, from 2014 to 2021.