Toto Wolff Preparing to Divest Shareholding Valuing Mercedes F1 at £4.6 Billion

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell part of his shareholding in the Mercedes F1 outfit.

This transaction estimates Mercedes at £4.6 billion – a record for a Formula 1 squad – following McLaren was appraised at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.

Wolff, who holds a 33% stake of Mercedes F1, plans to divest a shareholding approximately 5%.

The 53-year-old would stay on as team principal and CEO if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Structure

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

A Mercedes spokesperson stated: "We will be making no official statement on this. The management structure of the team stays unaltered, and each shareholder are fully committed to continued achievements of the brand in Formula One."

Valuation Growth

This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team after Ineos Group bought its share for £208 million in 2022.

This surge demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams in the past few years as a consequence of the growing popularity of Formula 1 around the world.

This trend was evident with the box-office performance of the F1 movie featuring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458m) at the box office.

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

Current Standings

Mercedes are runner-up in the team standings, behind McLaren Racing, with three Grands Prix left this season.

Mercedes' primary racer British driver George Russell has secured victory in two of the 21 races so far and is in fourth place in the drivers' championship after McLaren's Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Red Bull Racing's Max Verstappen.

Mercedes secured a unprecedented eight consecutive constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one for Nico Rosberg, from 2014 and 2021.