UFC and WWE crossover: Everything you need to know about Endeavor’s new deal
Know everything of the Recent merger between UFc's parent company Endeavor and WWE
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Vince McMahon and Dana White ( via :Fox Business Esquire)
On April 3, UFC ‘s parent company Endeavor officially announced that it has signed a deal to acquire the pro wrestling giant WWE. Endeavor will own a 51% stake in the new combat sports and entertainment company. WWE shareholders will have the remaining 49%, according to the terms of the agreement. The deal values WWE at $9.3 billion and UFC, which is owned by Endeavor, at $12.1 billion. While the new company does not have a name yet, the names of every influential position of the company has been announced.
The board will consist of 11 members, six appointed by Endeavor and five by WWE. Ari Emanuel CEO of Endeavor will act as chief executive of both Endeavor and the new company. Vince McMahon will be executive chairman.
Endeavor President and COO Mark Shapiro will also work in the same roles as McMahon at the new company. Dana White will remain as president of UFC, and WWE CEO Nick Khan will stay on as president of WWE. The news is very recent and many new developments regarding the deal are still being released. However, UFC and WWE have caused an earthquake in the sports and entertainment industry after this announcement.
Who owns the UFC? a brief look into the company’s ownership
UFC is arguably one of the fastest-growing organisations out there. Over the last two decades, this sport has generated an average of 300,000 to over 1,000,000 views per Pay per view. After it’s recent deal with WWE, UFC owned by Endeavor is valued at 12.1 billion dollars. However, it wasn’t always owned by Endeavor from the start and for new fans of the sport it wasn’t started by Dana White as well.
The UFC was founded by Businessman ‘Art Davie’ and Brazilian martial artist’ Rorion Gracie’. It was later in January 2001 that Dana White pursued Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta to buy the UFC. UFC was acquired for 2 million dollars and became a subsidiary of Zuffa. The Endeavor Group Holdings, formerly known as WME-IMG, bought a majority stake of Zuffa, LLC, the UFC’s parent company, from the Fertitta brothers for a bit more than $4 billion.
The company was sold for over just 4 billion dollars. Dana White had a 9 percent ownership under the Fertitta brothers and earned around 360 million dollars. After the change in ownership, Dana White was still the owner and the new deal gave him dealership rights in the company. As of now The Endeavor group via Zuffa, LLC owns 50.1% of UFC. The remaining 49.9% are dispersed between Silver Lake Partners, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, and MSD Capital.
Vince McMahon and his History with WWE
Vince McMahon(via :WWE)
Vincent Kennedy McMahon Jr. stubborn, a visionary legend and many more adjectives. Vincent McMahon is the biggest reason behind WWE’s success on a global level. Prior to becoming the WWE, it is today it was known as Capitol wrestling corporation. This company was owned by McMahon Jr’s father Vince McMahon Sr. in the early 70s. In 1980 Vince founded Titan sports, the parent company of WWF/WWE and went on to purchase Capitol wrestling federation from his father.
In the last 4 decades, Vince McMahon has destroyed all his competitors in the pro wrestling industry. Due to him, we have witnessed some of the greatest pro wrestling phenomena. Be it Hulk Hogan, The Undertaker, John Cena, The Rock, the list goes on and on. Vince McMahon had to retire from the WWE in 2022 amid a sex scandal. WWE was recently bought out by Endeavor parent company of UFC. McMahon is back being the co-exec Chairman of the newly merged company with Ari Emanuel as the Executive chairman of the company.
What will be the future of the company? The aftermath of WWE and Endeavor deal.
Read more here: https://t.co/Po2SXvEHwF pic.twitter.com/bgNjlDmNqJ
— UFC (@ufc) April 3, 2023
UFC’s parent company Endeavor has acquired the WWE as of 3rd April. A newly publicly traded company will be formed with a combined valuation of over 21 billion dollars. The collective viewership of the new company will easily be in the 1 and 2 billion viewers belt. “Together, we will be a 21+ billion-dollar live sports and entertainment powerhouse with a collective fanbase of more than a billion people and an exciting growth opportunity”, said Vince McMahon in his interview.
While Mcmahon takes on the role of Executive chairman of the new company and Dana White will remain the president of UFC. The functioning of both organisations will be different on most parts, but the marketing and crossover opportunities are massive. According to McMahon the focus of the new company will be will look to maximize the value of combined media rights. They will enhance sponsorship monetization, develop new forms of content and pursue other strategic mergers and acquisitions to further bolster their brands. The deal between two sports and entertainment industry giants will catapult them to new heights of success and viewership in the future.
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Gerard Crispin
(3318 Articles Published)