The roots of the brand trace back to the 1901 Mercedes by Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft and the 1886 Benz Patent-Motorwagen by Carl Benz. The 1894 Benz Velo by Carl Benz is widely recognised as the first automobile powered by an internal combustion engine. Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach converted a stagecoach with a petrol engine, introduced later that year. The Mercedes automobile was first marketed in 1901 by Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG). Emil Jellinek, an Austrian automobile entrepreneur, registered the trademark in 1902, naming the 1901 Mercedes 35 hp after his daughter Mercédès Jellinek. In 1901, the name "Mercedes" was re-registered by DMG worldwide as a protected trademark. The first Mercedes-Benz branded vehicles were produced in 1926, following the merger of Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler's companies into the Daimler-Benz company on 28 June of the same year.
Both companies that merged to form Mercedes-Benz in 1926 had already achieved success in motor racing. A single Benz competed in the 1894 Paris–Rouen motor race. Mercedes-Benz has been involved in various motorsport activities, including sports car racing and rallying. The company withdrew from motorsport after the 1955 Le Mans disaster, where a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR was involved in a fatal accident. Stirling Moss and Denis Jenkinson won the 1955 Mille Miglia road race in Italy in a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR.
Mercedes-Benz returned to front-line competition in 1987, participating in Le Mans, Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM), and Formula One with Sauber. In the 1990s, Mercedes-Benz partnered with Ilmor and campaigned IndyCars, winning the 1994 Indianapolis 500 and 1994 CART IndyCar World Series Championship with Al Unser Jr.. The 1990s also saw the return of Mercedes-Benz to GT racing with the Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR, which secured two titles in FIA's GT1 class.
Mercedes-Benz participated in the Formula One world championship in 1954 and 1955, winning two titles with Juan-Manuel Fangio. The company left the sport after two seasons. Mercedes-Benz returned as an engine manufacturer in 1994, partnering with Sauber before switching to McLaren in 1995. Mercedes engines won drivers' championships for Mika Häkkinen in 1998 and 1999, and for Lewis Hamilton in 2008, as well as a constructors' championship in 1998. In 2007, McLaren-Mercedes was fined for stealing confidential Ferrari technical data.
In 2009, Ross Brawn's team, Brawn GP, used Mercedes engines to win titles. Mercedes-Benz later bought 70% of the Brawn GP team, renaming it Mercedes GP for the 2010 season. After rule changes in 2014, Mercedes clinched drivers' and constructors' titles with Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg. Mercedes repeated this success in 2015 and 2016. Hamilton was champion in 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020, while Rosberg won in 2016. Their unbeaten streak was broken in 2021 by Max Verstappen of Red Bull-Honda.
Mercedes, through its EQ branch, joined the Formula E Championship for the 2019–20 season with drivers Stoffel Vandoorne and Nyck de Vries. De Vries won the title in the 2020-21 season, and Vandoorne won in the 2021–22 season. After winning both championships, Mercedes EQ left Formula E and sold the team to McLaren.
Juan Manuel Fangio, a five-time Formula 1 World Champion, was honorary president of Mercedes-Benz Argentina from 1987 until his death in 1995. Michael Schumacher, a seven-time Formula 1 World Champion, drove for Mercedes in the World Endurance Championship in the 80s and then in its Formula One Team from 2010 to 2012. Lewis Hamilton, also a seven-time Formula 1 World Champion, drove for Mercedes in its Formula One Team from 2013 to 2024. Nico Rosberg, the 2016 Formula 1 World Champion, drove for Mercedes in its Formula One Team from 2010 to 2016.
AMG is Mercedes-Benz's in-house performance-tuning division, specializing in high-performance versions of most Mercedes-Benz cars. AMG has been wholly owned by Mercedes-Benz since 1999. The 2009 SLS AMG, a revival of the 300SL Gullwing, is the first car to be entirely developed by AMG.
Mercedes-Benz sponsored the Germany national team until 2018. Mercedes-Benz sponsors Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart and provided naming rights for its stadium, the former Mercedes-Benz Arena. The company formerly held a ten-year naming rights contract to the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans. In 2015, Mercedes-Benz was announced as the naming rights sponsor for the Atlanta Falcons' new home, Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
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