Toto Wolff Set to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes Formula 1 Team at £4.6bn
Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to offload part of his ownership stake in the Mercedes F1 outfit.
The deal values the Mercedes team at £4.6 billion – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after McLaren were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.
The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of Mercedes F1, would sell a stake approximately 5%.
The 53-year-old will remain as team principal and chief executive officer if the sale goes through.
Ownership Structure
Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes and chemicals giant Ineos Group, who each also own a third of the company.
A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We are providing no comment on this. The governance of Mercedes F1 stays unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."
Financial Growth
This arrangement signifies a substantial rise in worth of Mercedes F1 since Ineos Group bought its stake for £208 million in 2022.
The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of Formula 1 outfits in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of the sport globally.
This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film featuring Brad Pitt, which was released last summer and earned more than $630m (£458 million) at cinemas worldwide.
It is the actor's top-grossing film and the most successful sports movie to date.
Current Standings
The Mercedes team are second in the constructors' championship, trailing McLaren, with three Grands Prix left in the current championship.
Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 grands prix so far and is fourth in the drivers' championship behind McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull's Max Verstappen.
The team secured a unprecedented eight straight team titles and seven driver championships, six won by Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 to 2021.
