Endeavor Group Holdings have officially announced this week that an agreement has been made to merge WWE and UFC.
The new company will consist of a leadership team comprising of Ari Emanuel as CEO, who is the current CEO of Endeavour, as well as WWE’s majority shareholder Vince McMahon as executive chairman.
Dana White will continue on as the president of UFC, whilst WWE will appoint current CEO Nick Khan as their president. Mark Shapiro will also be president and COO of Endeavour and the new company.
The firm’s controlling interest will come from Endeavour with a 51% ownership, whilst current WWE shareholders will own 49% interest.
The companies said in a statement, “Together, UFC and WWE will have global reach, impressive scale and omnichannel distribution.
“On a combined 2022 fiscal year-end basis, UFC and WWE achieved revenue of $2.4 billion and a 10 percent annual revenue growth rate since 2019.”
Vince McMahon also said, “Together, we will be a $21-plus 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 maximise the value of our combined media rights, enhance sponsorship monetisation, develop new forms of content and pursue other strategic mergers and acquisitions to further bolster our strong stable of brands.”
Both companies board of directors have unanimously approved the deal.
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