BEVERLY HILLS (CelebrityAccess) – United Talent Agency (UTA) has today (July 17) announced a significant investment in powerhouse sports agency Klutch Sports Group, led by its founder and CEO Rich Paul.
Under the terms of the new deal, Klutch will continue to operate under its own brand and Paul will also become Head of UTA Sports, focusing on building UTA’s sports business for athletes in all their professional endeavors, on and off the field.
“Rich has built Klutch with the vision, values and entrepreneurial spirit that UTA cherishes,” said UTA CEO Jeremy Zimmer. “By focusing on growing clients’ businesses and putting their interests first, Klutch is built for the modern athlete who wants to thrive at the intersection of sports, media, music, art and culture. We are thrilled to work with Rich and his team to build Klutch and UTA Sports into a global powerhouse.”
Klutch Sports was founded in September 2012 in Cleveland, Ohio and has quickly emerged as one of the most important agencies in all of sports. Its clients include Anthony Davis, Draymond Green, LeBron James, Ben Simmons and John Wall. In the last two years, Klutch has negotiated almost $1 billion in contracts, expanded its offices in Cleveland and Los Angeles, added two All-NBA clients and three first-round draft picks.
“We started Klutch because we believed there was a different way to represent players,” said Paul. We understood the world was changing and how athletes required an entirely new perspective from their agents. When I met with Jeremy and the UTA team, it was clear to me they were the perfect partner for Klutch’s next phase of growth. They understand and share our view on the future of sports and recognize how there is an entirely new way to represent elite athletes. The innovation, resources and talent at UTA is going to supercharge everything we can do and together, UTA and Klutch, will build a transformative global sports business.”
To date, UTA’s work with athletes has focused off the field, representing clients including Olympic Gold Medalists Shaun White and Tara Lipinski, NFL Pro-Bowlers Von Miller and Rob Gronkowski, NBA All-Star Chris Webber and more, as they pursue additional interests and opportunities in film, television, video games, endorsements, resorts and other pursuits.
With Klutch Sports Group, the partnership sees UTA stepping directly into the business of contract negotiations for athletes.
