Hit by mounting losses, legendary Formula One team Williams on Friday announced it is looking to raise capital or potentially sell part or all of the business.
No decision has been made but the team, which is majority owned by co-founder Frank Williams, who also serves as team principal, has hired a financial adviser to assist with a review of the business and its potential sale.
Williams was founded in 1977 by Frank Williams and Patrick Head and remains the third most successful team in the history of F1 thanks to nine Constructors' titles and seven Drivers' titles, though in recent years it's been a shadow of its former self. The team finished last in 2019 after scoring just one point the whole season.
The poor performance resulted in a decline in profits, with Williams reporting a loss of 13 million British pounds (approximately $16 million) in 2019, down from a profit of 12.9 million British pounds the year before.
Williams also announced Friday it ended deals with its main sponsors ROKiT and ROK Drinks.
Despite the delayed start of the 2020 F1 season, whose first race is now likely to be in July, William said it is fully funded and ready to resume racing.
One of Williams' current investors is Toto Wolff, who is team principal at Mercedes-AMG. He's also just become an investor in Aston Martin which is set to enter F1 next season via a rebranding of the Racing Point team.
