The acquisition of WWE by Endeavor is expected to be finalized next month.
Endeavor announced today during their Q2 earnings release that their acquisition of WWE is expected to close in mid-to-late September. The company had previously announced that the deal was expected to conclude sometime during the second half of the year. Upon completion, Endeavor plans to merge WWE and UFC into one public company called TKO Group Holdings Inc.
Brandon Thurston reported that on the phone call to investors, Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel noted that there were plans on making cost savings and synergies happen immediately upon the deal closing.
Endeavor announced the acquisition of WWE back in early April during WrestleMania weekend. Vince McMahon, who retired from WWE last year, forced himself back in power in January with the intention of facilitating a sale of the company. Once the acquisition is complete, McMahon will serve as the executive chairman of TKO Holdings.
In WWE’s Q2 earnings report, it was noted that McMahon was recently served with a federal search warrant and grand jury subpoena regarding hush money payments to women that led to his retirement last year.
When the plan for the merger between Vince McMahon’s WWE and Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor was first announced, it was known at that point that the eventual new public merged company would trade under the TKO ticker. McMahon and Emanuel told CNBC that the name would be announced soon.
The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2023 assuming it clears all regulatory hurdles. When it was first announced, the valuation was at $20 billion for the merged company but that will be determined by the public when shares begin trading.
McMahon will be Executive Chairman of the new company while Emanuel will be CEO. Nick Khan will remain as WWE president while Dana White will remain as UFC president.
Here are notes from WWE’s SEC filing filed on Friday afternoon.
As part of their acquisition by Endeavor, the company will merge with the UFC to form a new public company. In their SEC filing, the company was referred to as “New Whale Inc.”. However, it was noted in the filing that the name is temporary, and that the name will be changed prior to the completion of the acquisition.
It was additionally noted in the document that Vince McMahon, who forced himself back into the company in January, paid $1.65 million in plaintiff attorney fees associated a the lawsuit filed against him for forcing himself back on WWE’s board.
The SEC filing notes:
In lieu of an application for attorneys’ fees and expenses and after engaging in arms’-length negotiations, McMahon agreed to make a payment to plaintiffs’ counsel in the amount of $1,650,000 in attorneys’ fees (inclusive of expenses). The Court has not been asked to review, and will pass no judgment on, the payment of a fee or its reasonableness.
In addition, the SEC filing listed the estimated amount WWE executives would receive following the completion of the transaction. That includes Vince McMahon ($16,027,770), Nick Khan ($72,023,451), Paul Levesque ($25,625,995), Chief Financial Officer Frank Riddick III ($20,117,225), Kevin Dunn ($31,880,058), and Chief Human Resources Officer Suzette Ramirez-Carr ($3,356,150).
Stephanie McMahon was also listed as an executive, but the filings noted that she would not receive any compensation from the acquisition:
Ms. McMahon formerly served as WWE’s Co-Chief Executive Officer through January 10, 2023 and is not a current employee of WWE. She does not hold any outstanding WWE equity awards and is no longer party to arrangements pursuant to which she could receive cash or severance payments and benefits in connection with the Transactions, including the merger.
Regarding the event of a termination of one of the executive officers, the filing said:
Under the applicable agreement with WWE, in the event of a qualifying termination, the named executive officers, other than Ms. McMahon and Mr. Dunn, are entitled to receive a lump-sum cash payment in the amount of (i) 2x base salary for Messrs. McMahon and Khan, (ii) 1.5x base salary for Messrs. Riddick and Levesque and (iii) 1x base salary for Ms. Ramirez-Carr. Under WWE’s severance policy, Mr. Dunn is entitled to receive 12 months of base salary continuation. As of the date of this information statement/prospectus, Ms. McMahon is not party to any contractual arrangement with WWE pursuant to which she could receive cash or severance payments and benefits in connection with a qualifying termination.
Endeavor announced the acquisition of WWE last month. The deal is expected to be finalized later this year.
Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel has commented on his company’s acquisition of WWE last month.
WWE and UFC will merge into a newly created company as part of the deal. Emanuel will be the new company’s CEO while Vince McMahon will serve as Executive Chairman. Emanuel spoke about the deal on Wednesday during an appearance on CNBC’s ‘Squawk on the Street.’
He was asked if he plans on letting WWE “do what they want to do,” and responded:
Exactly, and we do what we do as it relates to saving some cost, driving some revenue with sponsorship, international sales. Like we did at UFC, we’re going to do 2.0 at WWE.
When asked about upcoming television rights negotiations, Emanuel noted that with WWE and UFC’s deals expiring at different times, it puts the two brands on separate paths.
Emanuel said:
Right now, we’re focused on saving some cost, doing sponsorship, which they didn’t have. It’s the same formula we used at UFC.
[WWE’s] rights are open now, [UFC’s] in a year and a half from now. I think they are on separate time frames.
Emanuel’s comments about separate television rights agreements echo what WWE’s Nick Khan told Axios last month. However, Khan wouldn’t rule out the possibility of the new company seeking a combined streaming deal for both WWE and UFC. WWE’s current deal with NBC Universal for streaming rights expires in 2026 and UFC’s deal with ESPN+ in 2026.
In an extensive interview done earlier this month, WWE CEO Nick Khan discussed what the company is looking forward to with the impending Endeavor merger, adding in an interesting line about their Peacock deal coming up in a few years.
In his discussion with Lightshed Partners, Khan was asked about whether the new WWE & UFC merged company would be interested in packaging their rights together and perhaps delaying the next round of TV rights to align everything.
Khan said WWE is “ready to go now” when it comes to Raw and SmackDown negotiations, but specifically mentioned that one thing not being talked about is their WWE Network and PPV/PLE licensing deal to Peacock which is up just months after the UFC’s deal with ESPN is in 2025.
“That Peacock deal? The timing of that is interesting to us,” he said.
As he’s done in the past, Khan put over the Peacock relationship and that he feels NBCU leadership would say WWE fans have contributed greatly to their 20+ million paid subscribers.
When asked if WWE would be interested in a similar model to what UFC and ESPN have with PPVs and live events, Khan said he thought the UFC/Disney deal was “extraordinary” and pointed out how UFC retained their rights to their Fight Pass streaming service as a hedge.
Khan said their preference is to license the WWE Network product, but that if it can’t be done for the right price, they will just take it back in house.
Here are some other notes from the hour-long talk that took place on April 7th.
More rights talk, a return to PPV?
Khan said there isn’t interest in going back to linear PPV due to those providers taking half the money “just for plugging in.” They would consider going back to the digital PPV model if it was accessible for the fanbase and priced right.
With the rights for both Raw and SmackDown, they “want the best sized deal possible” and while they hope they remain with both NBCUniversal and Fox, “if we get out of the exclusive negotiation window, the marketplace is going to be robust.”
Asked about their ratings being down compared to the past going into these rights, Khan said they look at ratings vs. everything else currently and while linear and cable ratings are down, they are up.
“We think we have a hot hand at this moment in time and we think, comparatively speaking in the marketplace, we’re doing pretty well,” he said, noting there are many more buyers than there were five years due to the presence of streaming providers.
Khan said he doesn’t know if the marketplace is showing much of an appetite for a split between linear and streaming when it comes to splitting rights, using the NFL as an example.
“Would we? Sure. Do we think the marketplace will allow for that? Not as sure,” he said.
Asked about whether the Raw and SmackDown rights have to be negotiated together, he used the NHL as an example of deals not being done together and cited their big rights increase despite people saying their ratings were down too.
A return to a more mature WWE?
Asked if WWE would consider more mature content that is more geared toward what they did in years past, Khan said there has been a “conversation point” amongst themselves and NBCU about the 10 PM hour of Raw and what they could do with that, adding they are nowhere near a decision.
On paying wrestlers more
The criticisms of UFC fighter pay came up which Khan said is the UFC’s business to manage and “goes untouched by us” in this eventual merged company.
With wrestler pay, Khan said, “We think a lot of them are well compensated. Certainly, all talent wants to be paid more and management wants to try to manage those costs.”
He said that their individual deals with talents are unique and WWE is “confident in our position in the marketplace.”
He did add that depending on whatever the rights fees increases turn out to be, “we expect a lot of that to drop to the bottom of the line,” intimating talent would see some benefit.
The benefits of Endeavor
There were two specific points Khan brought up that they are looking forward to having Endeavor help with. One is sponsorship as despite hitting highs for the Royal Rumble and WrestleMania, he admired how Endeavor helped grown the UFC sponsorship number from $35 million pre-sale to nearly $200 million post-sale.
The other is Endeavor’s relationships overseas which they think will be a big benefit with various rights deals throughout the world as they have “boots on the ground” in many regions that WWE does not.
UK & India media rights, Saudi relationship
Khan said UK media rights (coming up in the next few years) and a “hyper-focused” approach in India will be focuses. He said the India-targeted WWE Superstar Spectacle in January 2021 was viewed by 25 million people live and nearly 40 million over a three-day period. He expects things to pick up in India following the Zee-Sony merger as they can begin planning their next live event there.
Khan said there are no issues with the Saudi Arabia relationship post-merger announcement despite Endeavor’s past moves in pulling business out of the country. They are looking forward to two Saudi events this year.
Corporate cuts
As has been stated before, Khan said there are cost synergies to be had with the new company with “obvious overlap” between the two. They want to become as lean and mean as possible.
In terms of cutting a significant headcount, he said they are looking at cutting “other costs” and need to be protective of the creative and production teams and are not looking to cut there.
Dana White says Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel helped UFC get to another level and he can do the same for WWE.
Endeavor purchased UFC in 2016 for $4.02 billion. According to a CNBC report earlier this month, the company now has enterprise value of $12 billion.
White, who owned 9% of the company at the time of sale, remained on as UFC president and says he only has “positive, incredible things” to say about working with Endeavor.
White appeared on The Pat McAfee Show on Friday and was asked about the WWE and UFC merger.
White said:
That’s one of the great things about Ari [Emanuel] and why he’s such a great partner and why he’s so good to work with. He came in and he bought the UFC, they asked me to stay and Ari’s one of those guys that lets you run your business, he lets you do what you do.
He also revealed that he met with the McMahons and told them what working with Emanuel is like.
White continued:
I actually met with the McMahons the last time I was in New York. They wanted to know what it was like to be in business with him and everything else and, obviously, I couldn’t say anything but incredible, positive things about it.
Emanuel will serve as the chief executive of the new company created through the WWE and UFC merger. White doesn’t believe the merger will impact the UFC at all but will be very beneficial for WWE.
White said:
How this is going to affect our company, it won’t at all, we’re going to keep doing what we do. How it affects WWE is I think there is a lot of value that Ari can add on the business side whether it’s licensing, sponsorship, and the list goes on and on, he’ll help grow those different areas of their business. They’re valued at $9 billion, watch and see what they are in five years.
We always knew there was room for growth and what we wanted to do, and the Fertittas were really good about this, just like Bob Meyrowitz who sold it to us, Bob Meyrowitz felt like we were guys that could take it to another level and the same thing happened when we sold to Ari. You want to sell to a guy who can help grow the business and take it to another level and that’s exactly what Vince has done too.
World Wrestling Entertainment has agreed to a deal with Endeavor that will lead to the formation of a new company, currently called NewCo, but that could be changed. Its name on the stock market looks to be TKO, and the new company will combine UFC and WWE.
The merger of the two similar dominant brands in their respective industries is expected to be finalized and the company is to go public in four to six months. If, for whatever reason, the merger isn’t finalized by the start of 2024, which is unlikely to happen, the deal will fall apart. The idea is to create a company with a stock market value of $21.3 billion, based on a valuation of UFC at $12 billion and WWE at $9.3 billion.
These are claimed valuations from the new company and there is no actual cash changing hands, as this is a merger and not an acquisition. Vince McMahon did not sell WWE as much as merge it with UFC and he will remain a key person in power with the new company. Basically McMahon and Ari Emanuel will be the key decision makers for WWE business going forward, while Nick Khan goes from his role of CEO to WWE President. Paul Levesque remains in charge of creative, but Vince McMahon will have influence and power over all the major creative decisions and could have power over all decisions as things played out during the week.
The deal for Endeavor to purchase WWE came together in just a few weeks.
Endeavor president Mark Shapiro spoke with Puck recently and said he did not know the deal was going through until Saturday. Shapiro says Endeavor put in a bid to purchase a majority share of WWE just three weeks prior.
The all-stock deal is expected to close by the end of the year, pending regulatory approval.
Endeavor’s first bid was reportedly made in mid-March at a meeting with Shapiro, Ari Emanuel, Nick Khan, and Vince McMahon at the Raine Group offices in New York. Shapiro and Emanuel then made a second and “more emotional” pitch the following week at WWE headquarters.
The pair outlined their proposal during a meeting with WWE chairman Vince McMahon and C.E.O. Nick Khan at Raine Group offices, in New York, in mid-March, sources involved with the deal told me, and made a more emotional pitch one week later at WWE headquarters in Stamford.
Liberty Media, owners of F1, the Atlanta Braves, and SeriusXM were also in the running to purchase the company up until Endeavor and WWE signed a term sheet on Saturday evening.
The report continues:
Still, they faced stiff competition from at least one rival bidder—John Malone’s Liberty Media, the owner of Formula One—until the very end
“It was nip and tuck all the way,” Shapiro said about the process.
Shapiro also said he feels the merger puts WWE in a better position to negotiate television rights fees later this year.
He said:
“There’s no question that when Nick goes in to renew his domestic deals, having us at the table, with our relationships and our portfolio of assets, will be helpful in the process.”
Due to the merger, staffing layoffs are potentially a cost-saving opportunity for the newly created company. Shapiro believes they can save up to $100 million by combining WWE and UFC into one company.
“Anything from H.R. to finance to legal to communications production to distribution and marketing,” Shapiro said. “Across every area, you’re going to find cost synergies; you’re going to integrate and ultimately highlight and appoint the best and brightest teams.”
It’s a brand new We’re Live, Pal! as Andrew Zarian and I talk about a crazy amount of news surrounding WWE WrestleMania 39 weekend.
We discussed WWE becoming an Endeavor property and merging with the UFC to create one company. We look at Vince McMahon having more to do with the creative side now, and do a deep dive into Cody Rhodes losing to Roman Reigns on Sunday and what it could mean down the line.
Then, we looked at this week’s AEW Dynamite lineup and the discourse surrounding Tony Khan’s announcement.
You can watch the show above or listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts in addition to the link below.
With the dust not even close to being settled on the merger that will see Vince McMahon’s WWE fused with Endeavor’s UFC in a new company, indications on how the new WWE will be run are emerging.
In an interview with Sports Business Journal’s John Ourand, Endeavor president Mark Shapiro said, “We’re going to run the UFC playbook. The opportunity to put Vince McMahon’s creative head with Dana (White) and Ari (Emanuel) is going to create a significant amount of value for shareholders.”
On Monday morning, Endeavor and WWE announced their intent to merge WWE with UFC into a new yet-to-be-named publicly traded combat sports company trading under the ticker symbol TKO.
The playbook Shapiro referred to will be to focus on growing WWE sponsorship, licensing, hospitality and ticket sales in addition to developing its talent through unscripted shows, movies and endorsements.
“That’s the strategy. That’s how it has successfully played out for the UFC over the last six years. Remember when we bought it for $4.1 billion? People thought that price was crazy. Now, it is valued at $12.1 billion. I mean, what a story. We hope to do the same thing with the WWE.”
Shapiro cited a statistic that 80% of WWE’s net revenues come from the media segment. As alluded to during Emanuel’s interview alongside McMahon with CNBC Monday, Endeavor won’t be a central figure in the negotiations on the new TV rights contracts until the merger deal closes later this year.
WWE and UFC may choose to seek a combined streaming deal after current agreements expire.
Nick Khan told Axios on Monday that the newly created company will seek separate TV rights deals for both its wrestling and MMA properties. However, he wouldn’t rule out the idea of a combined streaming deal in the future.
WWE’s current streaming deal with NBCUniversal’s Peacock expires in 2026 while UFC’s deal with ESPN+ expires in 2025.
When asked about a potential combined streaming deal, Khan only responded, “the good folks at NBCU have been tremendous partners to us. So let’s see what they have to say.”
Khan also wouldn’t rule out the potential of layoffs and staffing changes coming out of the WWE/UFC merger.
“We’re not sure,” Khan said. “An integration team is going to be put into place between both companies in short order, and we’ll know — we’ll have a lot more in the next week or two.”
Khan also noted that WWE will be continuing its relationship with The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
“[O]ur relationship with The Kingdom is a terrific partnership for which we’re appreciative of, and you know, nothing in terms of anyone else’s prior experience will affect that.”
“We think that we’ve delivered the product in the way that the Kingdom wanted it delivered. We have a multiple year agreement with them in place. We’re excited to do a show — we’ll be back there May 27 for a big premium live event.“
The premium live event Khan is referring to is The King and Queen of the Ring event scheduled to take place in the Jeddah Super Dome next month.
In an exclusive interview with CNBC taped Sunday, both Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel and WWE Executive Chairman Vince McMahon went into deep detail about the big Monday news that WWE will be acquired and merge with UFC into a new combat sports powerhouse.
A jubilant McMahon, sporting his new look, was asked about whether he would remain in creative going forward. He said “yes and no” and that he would remain at a higher level, but not “in the weeds” as he said he has loved to be in the past.
McMahon said the merger is “the biggest thing Ari Emanuel and Vince McMahon have ever done. Combining forces like this, there’s never been anything like this. People will be talking about this for a long time.”
Following regulatory approval that could come within the next 4-6 months, the yet-to-be named company will combine the two combat sports brands in a way that excites Emanuel.
“It’s very rare to get iconic brands like the UFC and WWE together. Individually, they are incredible assets. Together, with the flywheel of Endeavor, I believe it makes them unicorns,” he said, later saying they are working on the new name of this property.
Emanuel said he has known McMahon for 23 years as he first represented them as a young agent. He put McMahon over as a visionary that saw the explosion of cable, pay-per-view, taking the company public, and going direct to consumer before others in his space did.
“Just look out,” he said.
The scandal and legacy
Asked by Scott Wapner about whether last summer’s hush money scandal helped pushed a sale along quicker than he would have liked, McMahon said it didn’t “in and of itself” and the sale would have happened anyway.
McMahon was asked about his legacy with the sale, the last year of controversy, and everything else.
“I have made mistakes, obviously, personally and professionally throughout my 50 year career. I have owned up to every single one of them and then moved on. I’m not sure on legacy stuff, I’m not going to write it,” he said, adding he has had an extraordinary amount of fun, a great passion for what he has done, and “did the biggest deal (Emanuel) has ever done in his life.”
Emanuel joked he would have bodyslammed McMahon if he thought was going to leave following a sale, answering “Oh my god, yes” when asked if he wanted him to stick around.
“Him being able to utilize what we have built in our flywheel, I’m the luckiest guy in the world,” he explained, saying that between McMahon, UFC president Dana White and what Endeavor has built, “That’s pretty unstoppable.”
When it comes to being talked into staying, McMahon said “not that much” as the company is his passion and he’s loved building WWE all his life and now with the opportunity to grow the company further.
“I wasn’t going to let him (walk away),” Emanuel said, adding that it’s an honor to him to have McMahon stay “because of what his vision for what the business is and where it’s going.”
With McMahon reporting to Emanuel, what happens if there’s a disagreement?
“If we disagree on something that we want to do, we’re not doing it,” Emanuel said, saying the same relationship will apply as it does with Dana White and Silver Lake where Endeavor has nothing to do with the creative process and focus on all the “back stuff.”
“That’s called a relationship. We will work it out,” he explained.
Both men downplayed McMahon gaining the full rights to his likeness and story with Emanuel saying, “It’s fair. It’s his legacy. He is the one that should control his legacy.”
“This is going to be UFC 2.0”
McMahon said the company needed to evolve and the synergies Endeavor brings are “totally different than everyone else.
“It’s the right time to do the right thing and the next evolution of WWE. I could probably do what Ari is with the UFC, but it would probably take me ten years. When I got to that ten years, Ari would be ten years ahead so it makes all the sense in the world for all the synergies and so we can extract all the value we can from the marketplace,” he said.
Emanuel felt neither WWE or Endeavor weren’t getting the pure value out of what they offer, saying that, “Combined, it’s rarified air.”
Emanuel said they paid a fair price and paid a little bit for control premium. He feels that with Endeavor’s cost cuts, WWE’s new deals coming up, and cost savings, they are in a great position going forward.
He said people criticized them for buying IMG and UFC, but, “This is going to be UFC 2.0 as it relates to all the things in the flywheel,” and the “unbelievably attractive economics” in doing so.
What did Wall Street miss in not seeing the deal? “Everything,” according to Emanuel.
When asked about the possibility of TV rights increases, Emanuel touted Raw and SmackDown’s rating increases, the key demos it appeals to, and how their rate card is “way below market by a significant amount.” He feels that with content being king and everything that WWE brings to the table, “I think they’re going to get a proper price” with the next round of rights negotiations.
With the news made official Monday morning that Endeavor will acquire WWE and merge them with UFC to create a new publicly traded combat sports company, Vince McMahon has spoken.
The WWE Executive Chairman, who will hold the same title in the new company, was quoted in WWE’s press release announcing the deal, saying it was “the best outcome for our shareholders and other stakeholders.”
“Given the incredible work that Ari and Endeavor have done to grow the UFC brand – nearly doubling its revenue over the past seven years – and the immense success we’ve already had in partnering with their team on a number of ventures, I believe that this is without a doubt the best outcome for our shareholders and other stakeholders.
“Together, we will be a $21+ billion live sports and entertainment powerhouse with a collective fanbase of more than a billion people and an exciting growth opportunity. The new company will be well positioned to maximize the value of our combined media rights, enhance sponsorship monetization, develop new forms of content and pursue other strategic mergers and acquisitions to further bolster our strong stable of brands. I, along with the current WWE management team, look forward to working closely with Ari and the Endeavor and UFC teams to take the businesses to the next level.”
“Ari” is Ari Emanuel, the Hollywood power broker who is the CEO of Endeavor.
The deal still has to clear regulatory hurdles, but could be closed by year’s end if it does. Endeavor will own 51% of the unnamed company (trading under the TKO stock symbol) with the other 49% to be owned by WWE shareholders.
The $21 billion number is the combined announced valuation of WWE ($9.3 billion) and UFC ($12.1 billion) with the market to determine what the company is truly worth.
McMahon announced the news to employees and there will be a 4 PM Eastern all-hands call regarding the transaction (via Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston):
“I’m excited to announce that WWE has entered into a partnership with Endeavor to create a one-of-a-kind company that will bring together two global sports and entertainment powerhouses: WWE and UFC.
“The historic alliance of these two formidable institutions has the potential to unlock vast growth opportunities for both organizations and generate an optimal outcome for our employees, shareholders, fans, and other stakeholders
“We are huge admirers of the work Endeavor has done to grow the UFC brand, and they will be the perfect partner to help supercharge our growth at WWE.”
Nick Khan will remain on as president of WWE under the new company as will UFC president Dana White.
WWE first became a publicly traded company in October 19, 1999, selling 11.5 million shares at $17.00/share. As of 8:30 AM Eastern, pre-market trading had shares down to $85.26, down 6.5% from Friday’s closing price of $91.26.
Three months after Vince McMahon found his way back to the company in an effort to spearhead a sale, WWE announced a transaction agreement on Monday with Endeavor, owners of the UFC, to buy the iconic wrestling brand.
The news was first broken hours before night two of Sunday’s WrestleMania 39 in Los Angeles by CNBC’s Alex Sherman and made official Monday morning with the SEC as it was finalized Sunday.
There are several regulatory hurdles to clear before the deal can be done, but the plan as first reported is to combine WWE and UFC into a publicly traded spin-off company. Endeavor will remain in place, owning 51% while the other 49% will be owned by WWE shareholders.
The name of the new company is unknown, but will trade under the ticker symbol TKO. If the aforementioned regulatory hurdles are cleared, the all-stock deal will be done in the second half of the year.
“This is a rare opportunity to create a global live sports and entertainment pureplay built for where the industry is headed,” said Ariel Emanuel, CEO of Endeavor. “For decades, Vince and his team have demonstrated an incredible track record of innovation and shareholder value creation, and we are confident that Endeavor can deliver significant additional value for shareholders by bringing UFC and WWE together.”
WWE’s enterprise value is reported as $9.3 billion with UFC carrying an enterprise value of $12.1 billion, putting the new company at just north of a $21 billion valuation.
From the Hollywood Reporter:
“We see significant operating synergies throughout the ecosystem,” Endeavor CFO Jason Lublin told an investors presentation that was webcast on Monday morning. He pointed to a combined $1 billion cost base, excluding direct operating expenditures, “half of which we believe are addressable.
“Lublin predicted the UFC and WWE merger will secure $50 million to $100 million in annual operating synergies, in part by following the earlier acquisition model for UFC which delivered $70 million in cost synergies and similarly integrating WWE into Endeavor’s global infrastructure.
According to reports, the deal came together quickly and the details were finalized over the past few weeks with everything being put to bed on Sunday.
The corporate structure will be Ari Emanuel, who was in attendance at WrestleMania Sunday, as chief executive of both Endeavor and this new venture. Patrick Whitesell remains as Endeavor executive chairman while Mark Shapiro remains as president of Endeavor and the new company. McMahon will be executive chairman of the new company with Nick Khan as president of WWE and Dana White remaining as president of UFC.
A new 11-person Board to be established this year will include six members from Endeavor and five members from WWE.
From the New York Times:
“Must-watch TV is a rarity these days,” said Mark Shapiro, Endeavor’s president and chief operating officer, who will also have those roles at the new company. “And unicorns like the U.F.C. and W.W.E. will be heavily in demand.”
Some answers, more questions
The impending sale ends an intriguing first quarter of the calendar year that saw McMahon return to the Board with two of his former executives in tow that resulted in several Board members resigning, his daughter Stephanie McMahon departing as co-CEO, and plenty of “palace intrigue” speculation with head of creative and Stephanie’s husband, Paul “Triple H’ Levesque, remaining at WWE.
Throughout the sales process, several companies were linked to buying WWE which included NBCUniversal (owners of USA Network and Peacock) and the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. A rumor shortly after Vince McMahon’s return that had the PIF buying WWE as a done deal caught fire for a night on social media but was debunked in short order.
Wrestlenomics’ Brandon Thurston reported that WWE employees were sent an email announcing the transaction Monday morning and that there will be an all-hands meeting at 4 PM Eastern.
WWE became a publicly traded company on October 19, 1999, selling 11.5 million shares at $17.00/share.
A major part of the WWE financial puzzle are the company’s impending media rights with both NBCUniversal (Raw) and Fox (SmackDown) which are both up in October 2024. The exclusive negotiating window with both entities opened up this weekend with the rights expected to increase substantially — a massive financial benefit for Endeavor. The UFC’s media deal with ESPN is also up in just a few years.
In past earnings calls, Khan has been bullish on WWE’s prospects of a massive increase in revenue due to the presence of streaming providers.
Vince McMahon remaining in power
There was some questions over the past few months that prospective buyers wouldn’t want McMahon to stay around due to the cloud of controversy surrounding his various “hush money” payouts that were uncovered by the Wall Street Journal last summer. McMahon repaid the company $17.4 million for costs related to the investigation last month.
In interviews, Khan said repeatedly that McMahon’s post-sale inclusion, or lack thereof, wouldn’t prevent any sale and that he would be willing to step away if required.
With this deal, that will not be the case.
He and UFC head Dana White have an existing relationship and White has gone on record for how much he appreciates McMahon. The two worked together during the time Brock Lesnar was bouncing between both companies and McMahon and family attended a UFC pay-per-view in Las Vegas that took place on the same day that Money in the Bank was held in the same venue.
