The TKO teamThe company that owns WWE and UFC is expanding its assets near sports by buying three businesses from its controlling owner for $3.25 billion. The effort team.
The businesses are Professional Bull Riders, On Location and IMG, the companies announced on Thursday. The deal is all-stock, and Endeavor’s ownership in TKO will increase from 53% to 59%.
The transaction expands TKO’s strategic ambitions. While the company has a new league in the PBR, the world’s largest bull riding league, it is also expanding into luxury hospitality and on-location and media rights consulting through IMG.
“Sports brings us together and there’s not much demand,” Mark Shapiro, president and chief operating officer of both Endeavor and TKO, said in an interview. “At TKO, we’re primarily interested in league ownership, and businesses that enhance our existing sports environment if it exists. Whether it’s ticket sales, hospitality, consumer products, media rights expertise. That’s what we’re getting at IMG and ON. Location.”
Silver Lake, a private equity firm announced its objectives to take Endeavor private earlier this year. As part of that transaction, Silver Lake wanted to divest some assets, Shapiro said. Endeavor came to the TKO board with a plan to sell three businesses. TKO organized a special committee to examine the transaction, which ultimately recommended it to the board, Shapiro said.
The PBR hosts more than 200 events annually for more than 1 million fans. PBR CEO and Commissioner Sean Gleeson will continue to lead the company, TKO said in a statement.
On-location offers luxury hospitality for major sporting events including the Super Bowl, Ryder Cup, March Madness, FIFA World Cup and Olympics.
IMG packages and sells media rights and brand partnerships providing strategic advice on the largest television deals for the NFL, English Premier League, National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, UFC, WWE and PBR. The IMG acquisition does not include “businesses associated with the IMG brand in licensing, models and tennis representation or IMG’s entire events portfolio,” TKO reported.
In addition to the transaction, TKO announced the initiation of a $300 million annual dividend and authorized a share repurchase plan of up to $2 billion of its Class A common stock.
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