F1: McLaren stake sale values team at record $5bn
McLaren’s 30 per cent stake sale values the Formula 1 team at north of $5bn, according to sources close to the deal.
Majority shareholders Mumtalakat, the Bahraini sovereign wealth fund, and UAE-based investment group CYVN Holdings this week completed the purchase of all shares they did not already own to acquire 100 per cent of the Formula 1 team at the summit of the constructors’ standings.
The 30 per cent was previously held by a mix of MSP Sports Capital – whose portfolio includes the X Games and football clubs Augsburg, Estoril Praia, AD Alcorcon, SK Beveren and Brondby IF – UBS O’Connor and Ares Investment Management, among others.
MSP Sports Capital, for example, entered into McLaren in December 2020 for £185m – their post-money valuation was over £560m.
It means the fund – founded in 2019 by Jahm Najafi, chairman of the NBA’s Phoenix Suns, and Jeff Moorad, CEO of MLB’s San Diego Padres – saw the exit value increase tenfold compared to the pre-money valuation of McLaren in 2020.
McLaren stake sale
The stake sale will see Najafi and Moorad leave the board, but they do so having secured the biggest sports team exit for an institutional fund in history. Mumtalakat will remain the biggest shareholder in the team.
The stakeholder shake-up comes a week after McLaren announced a multi-year, $100m-per-season deal with Mastercard which will see the payments giant become title sponsors of the papaya team.
Last year financial hawks valued McLaren at $2.65bn, suggesting their value has soared in the subsequent year.
Aston Martin was valued at £2.4bn in July this year after an agreement was reached with a binding letter of intent – with an unnamed buyer – for a minority stake sale in Aston Martin Lagonda Holdings.
There have been a number of murmurs about the continued investment in Mercedes from Ineos boss Sir Jim Ratcliffe, while Red Bull’s commitment to Formula 1 has been questioned by some in recent months.