Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Pricing Mercedes F1 at £4.6bn

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is engaged in final negotiations to sell a portion of his ownership stake in the Mercedes Formula 1 team.

This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in an adjustment to ownership structure last September.

The Austrian executive, who owns a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, would sell 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 and industrial group Ineos, who each also own a third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The governance of Mercedes F1 will remain unaltered, and all three partners are fully committed to the ongoing success of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its stake for £208 million in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the growth in market values of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years due to the growing popularity of the sport globally.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted last summer and has grossed more than $630m (£458 million) at the box office.

The film represents the actor's top-grossing movie and the highest-earning sports film ever released.

Present Standings

The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three races remaining this season.

Their lead driver British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.

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