American billionaire John Henry’s Fenway Sports Group holds talks to buy Cadillac F1 stake

Fenway Sports Group, the owner of Liverpool, has held talks about buying a majority stake in the Cadillac Formula One team for more than £2 billion, according to The Guardian, in a deal that would put billionaire Mark Walter’s holding in the team up for sale.

The Wall Street Journal then named FSG as one of several suitors in talks with Walter’s conglomerate, TWG Global, to buy part of his stake, citing people familiar with the matter. FSG declined to comment on its investment plans. TWG has denied that a sale of the team is imminent, and Sportico reported earlier this week that Walter is shopping his stake at a valuation of at least $3 billion.

The talks come as Walter sells sporting assets while facing scrutiny at home. He is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission over alleged fraud involving the management of funds at his insurance companies, Delaware Life, Clear Spring and EquiTrust, The Guardian reported. TWG has said “there has been no fraud.” The size of TWG’s and General Motors’ respective stakes in Cadillac has never been made public, though Sportico previously reported that Walter values his holding at about £2.24 billion.

For FSG, the appeal is Formula One’s growth, particularly in the United States. The group already has a motor sport foothold through its 50% stake in the NASCAR team RFK Racing. Formula One’s annual revenue has more than doubled to about $4 billion (£3 billion) since Liberty Media bought the sport in 2017, and the value of its TV rights continues to rise.

Cadillac’s on-track record is less attractive. The team is bottom of the constructors’ championship in its debut season and has yet to score a point, while its 2027 driver lineup remains unsettled.

The deal also matters for Liverpool. FSG sold 38% of the club this summer to a consortium that includes Jeff Bezos and Eduardo Saverin, in a transaction that valued Liverpool at £5.5 billion. That group holds an option to complete a full takeover before August 2027. Any move into Formula One would therefore draw questions about how FSG is allocating capital and what its plans are for the club.

Talks do not mean a sale is close. Several parties are reportedly interested, TWG has pushed back on the idea of an imminent deal, and no price or structure has been agreed in public. The key points to watch are whether FSG or another buyer emerges, how much control a buyer would get and what happens to the federal inquiry into Walter.