A power shift in Formula One’s most successful team
Mercedes Formula One principal Toto Wolff is in advanced talks to sell part of his stake in the team to George Kurtz, the billionaire chief executive of U.S. cybersecurity giant CrowdStrike — in a deal that would value the Silver Arrows at roughly $6 billion. The move, first discussed privately over the summer, could reshape the ownership structure of one of sport’s most dominant modern dynasties and underline the soaring financial value of Formula One franchises in the Liberty Media era.
Wolff, who owns about a third of Mercedes-AMG Petronas, is believed to be considering the sale of a minority portion — potentially 5–10 per cent — to raise liquidity and bring in a new strategic investor. People close to the discussions say the talks remain friendly, with Wolff expected to remain as both team principal and shareholder. But the deal highlights how dramatically the economics of Formula One have changed since the Austrian entrepreneur first joined Mercedes more than a decade ago.
From paddock to private equity
When Wolff acquired his stake in 2013, the Mercedes team was valued at under $1 billion. Since then, Formula One’s global expansion, Netflix-fuelled popularity and record commercial revenues have sent valuations soaring. The $6 billion figure now under discussion would make Mercedes one of the most valuable sports teams in Europe — rivalling elite football clubs such as Manchester United or Real Madrid.
For Kurtz, the move represents both passion and positioning. A lifelong motorsport enthusiast, he already sponsors the Mercedes F1 team through CrowdStrike, whose logo is emblazoned on the cars’ bodywork and hospitality suites. He also competes personally in GT racing and has been a visible presence in the paddock throughout the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
His potential investment would extend the trend of tech billionaires moving into elite sport — from Larry Ellison’s America’s Cup campaigns to Jim Ratcliffe’s part-ownership of Manchester United. Formula One, long dominated by industrial backers and oil money, is increasingly being viewed as a growth asset class: global, media-driven, and appealing to a younger, digital audience.
Why Wolff might cash in — but not out
For Wolff, the timing makes strategic sense. After a decade at the helm, he has turned Mercedes into both a racing powerhouse and a commercial juggernaut. Even after a challenging 2024 season, the team remains among Formula One’s most profitable, generating hundreds of millions in annual sponsorship and prize money.
Selling a slice of equity at a peak valuation allows Wolff to monetise part of his success without relinquishing control. It also diversifies his portfolio at a time when Formula One’s next growth phase — expansion in the U.S. and Asia, new technical regulations, and looming cost caps — could temper returns.
Those close to the negotiations describe the talks as “structured, amicable and forward-looking”. Mercedes’ majority owner, the Daimler Group, and minority co-investor Jim Ratcliffe’s INEOS are said to be supportive, viewing Kurtz as a credible and strategic long-term partner rather than a speculative entrant.
The broader transformation of F1 economics
The potential deal would also underscore the transformation of Formula One into a true asset market. Team valuations have quadrupled in under a decade as Liberty Media’s stewardship turned the championship from a closed industrial circle into a global entertainment platform.
Franchises such as Aston Martin and Alpine have attracted private-equity and sovereign wealth investors, while U.S. markets are now seen as the sport’s largest future growth engine. With record television deals, surging sponsorships and sell-out races from Miami to Las Vegas, Formula One’s commercial model increasingly resembles that of the NBA or NFL.
In that context, a $6 billion valuation for Mercedes — the team that defined the hybrid era — is no longer far-fetched. It reflects both brand equity and scarcity: there are only ten teams, each with guaranteed participation rights in a sport now watched by over half a billion fans annually.
A deal emblematic of a new F1 era
If completed, the Kurtz-Wolff partnership would symbolise Formula One’s shift from a niche engineering competition into a high-yield global business network. It would pair one of the sport’s shrewdest operators with a technology executive steeped in cybersecurity and cloud infrastructure — industries increasingly relevant to F1’s data-intensive future.
For Mercedes, it would inject new capital, fresh ideas and digital muscle just as the team seeks to regain its competitive edge on track. For Wolff personally, it would confirm his transformation from racer and investor into one of modern sport’s most successful deal-makers — a man equally at home in the pit wall and the boardroom.
In the fast-moving world of Formula One, few things stay still for long. But as valuations climb and investors queue for a piece of the action, even its champions are learning that momentum isn’t just measured in laps — it’s measured in billions.
