Published 16:22 IST, April 4th 2023
'Vince McMahon’s creative head with Dana White and Ari': UFC owners reveal plans for WWE
UFC owners who now also own WWE have revealed plans on their vision with their new acquisition. WWE and UFC are set to merge to form a new entity.
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On April 3, Endeavor Group Holdings, LLC. formally announced that an agreement has been signed under which it will hold a 51% stake in the WWE. It is the same company that owns the premier MMA organisation Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). With UFC already in its purview, the president of Endeavor Mark Shapiro has announced that UFC and WWE will merge to form a new entity.
The deal that could change the course of the fight world forever, which could possibly showcase the coming together of Dana White and Vince McMahon, has taken place successfully. There is a huge buzz around it as one of the biggest debates of the fight circuit, UFC vs WWE, the premier fight action vs Cashrich wrestling entertainment is set to now walk hand-in-hand. As reported on Monday, Endeavor announced that they are purchasing WWE and will merge it with the UFC into a new publicly traded company that will trade under the symbol TKO and be valued at $21 billion.
Shapiro spoke with Sports Business Journal and noted that the plan is similar to what they did with the UFC, saying, “We’re going to run the UFC playbook. The opportunity to put Vince McMahon’s creative head with Dana and Ari is going to create a significant amount of value for shareholders.”
UFC owners reveal plans for WWE
Shapiro noted that 80% of WWE’s net revenues come from media and that they can grow the company's sponsorship, licensing, hospitality, and ticketing revenue, as well as develop stars via non-scripted series, films, and endorsements. He said:
“That’s the strategy. That’s how it has successfully played out for the UFC over the last six years. Remember when we bought it for $4.1 billion? People thought that price was crazy. Now, it is valued at $12.1 billion. I mean, what a story. We hope to do the same thing with the WWE.”
So, what do you think the future holds for WWE? The Undertaker recently stated that nobody would be able to run WWE as it has been run by the McMahon family for over 4 decades. Do you think that the Phenom is right, or are you thrilled to witness a possible union between Conor McGregor and John Cena?
16:23 IST, April 4th 2023