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

This transaction values Mercedes at £4.6bn – an unprecedented figure for a Formula 1 squad – after the McLaren team were valued at £3.5bn in a change of corporate structure last September.

The Austrian executive, who owns one-third of the Mercedes F1 operation, would sell a shareholding in the region of five percent.

The 53-year-old will remain as team boss and CEO if the sale goes through.

Shareholder Breakdown

Remaining partners in the team are Mercedes-Benz and industrial group Ineos, who both hold one-third of the enterprise.

A Mercedes spokesperson said: "We will be making no official statement on the matter. The management structure of the team will remain unchanged, and each shareholder are dedicated to continued achievements of Mercedes-Benz in Formula One."

Financial Increase

This arrangement would represent a significant increase in worth of the Mercedes team since Ineos acquired its stake for £208m in 2022.

The rise demonstrates the expansion in valuations of F1 teams recently due to the increasing appeal of the sport around the world.

This trend was evident with the success of the Formula 1 film starring Hollywood star Brad Pitt, which debuted in summer 2023 and earned more than $630m (£458m) at cinemas worldwide.

It is Pitt's most successful film and the highest-earning sports film to date.

Present Standings

The Mercedes team are runner-up in the team standings, trailing McLaren Racing, with three races remaining in the current championship.

Mercedes' primary racer George Russell has won two 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.

Mercedes won a unprecedented eight straight constructors' championships and seven drivers' titles, six for Lewis Hamilton and one by Nico Rosberg, between 2014 and 2021.