Endeavour Group, parent company of UFC, is looking to add WWE to its stable of sports companies.
👉 Background: Endeavour Group Holdings is the parent company of UFC, the mixed martial arts franchise. It took a majority holding in UFC in 2016 in a $4.2 billion USD deal and then bought the rest at IPO.
👉 What happened: Now, Endeavour Group is looking to add WWE to its stable of sports companies. As part of the deal, the UFC business and WWE will form a separate publicly traded entity where Endeavour shareholders will own 51% of the merged company.
👉 What else: WWE shareholders would get 49% of the shared company... And that's the bottom line, 'cause Endeavour Group said so.
💡Move over Hollywood, sports are fast becoming the most valuable assets in entertainment. In the past, sports teams and leagues would make most of their money through tickets and merchandise. But today, the real monetisation opportunities are in the broadcasting rights.
💡Get this: WWE generated $1 billion from its media unit just last year, while UFC generated more than $300m USD per year over the past 5 years from ESPN. So, pro sports teams rank among the most reliably lucrative investment opportunities there are.
💡Endeavor has made more than 20 acquisitions in events or sports that are both scarce – and popular. Think: bull riding events, the Miami Open and Madrid Open tennis competitions.
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