World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) have announced plans to form a new entertainment company.
The companies announced the deal in a joint press release this week.
Endeavor, the parent company of UFC, valued at $12.1 billion, is expected to close an all-stock deal to acquire WWE, valued at $9.3 billion, later this year and merge the two brands into a new entertainment company that will be publicly traded under the ticker symbol “TKO.”
Endeavor will hold a 51% ownership stake in the new company, while WWE will own the remaining 49%.
The new company is valued at $21.4 billion and will be run by Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel, Vince McMahon, and an 11-person board. UFC President Dana White and WWE CEO Nick Khan will continue their roles with the organization.
“I think it’s an incredible opportunity for us to continue growing what is already a global brand in WWE,” Khan told ESPN. “We’re in 170 countries. Now, we’ll have the opportunity to monetize each and every one of those countries in a far better way with Endeavor’s global presence.”
“This is a rare opportunity to create a global live sports and entertainment pureplay built for where the industry is headed,” Emanuel said in the release. “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.”
The McMahon family created WWE, and the company has grown into the world’s biggest wrestling promoter. While the family has used the company to pursue other ventures in sports and business, like the first two versions of the XFL, wrestling has been its primary purpose.
Its big event, WrestleMania, has been held for 39 years and sold out in Los Angeles over the weekend, breaking its attendance and viewership records.
UFC was founded in 1993 and is the world’s largest mixed martial arts promoter. The organization, which includes 12 different weight classes, has held hundreds of events since its inception and draws millions of fans and viewers worldwide. White has been running the organization since 2001.
No further information about the new company has been revealed, and UFC has declined requests for comment.
