LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) — Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc., the company behind the global talent agency WME, announced it has completed its acquisition by a group of investors led by the private equity giant Silver Lake.
Following the completion of the transaction, Endeavor is now a privately traded company after Silver Lake and its co-investors acquired all remaining outstanding shares of Endeavor, bringing their stake in the company to 100%. According to Silver Lake, the estimated value of Endeavor and its businesses, including TKO Holdings, which encompasses WWE and UFC, as well as WME, is approximately $25 billion.
After closing the deal, the portfolio of representation businesses owned by Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc. will now be known as WME Group. This group includes the talent representation firm WME, the marketing agency 160over90, brand management and licensing venture IMG Licensing, and the non-scripted content company Pantheon Media Group.
Additionally, Endeavor announced that Mark Shapiro has been named President and Managing Partner of WME Group, while Ari Emanuel has been appointed Executive Chairman. Patrick Whitesell will become the CEO and Founder of a new platform in partnership with Silver Lake, focusing on investments across sports, media, and entertainment properties and IP.
“This remarkable moment—and the even more exciting future it launches—is thanks first and foremost to Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell, and to the relentless and ambitious strategic vision they have shared for more than twenty years to build Endeavor into a global powerhouse across talent, brands, and IP spanning entertainment, media, and sports. Silver Lake is proud and honored to be their partners since 2012 as they have continued to build the company. Over this period, revenue has grown twentyfold. Silver Lake has previously invested on six separate occasions to support Endeavor and now, with this latest investment, it is the single largest position in our global portfolio,” said Egon Durban, Co-CEO and Managing Partner of Silver Lake.
“Our ability to deliver landmark partnerships, career-defining business opportunities, and enduring cultural moments is amplified by this transaction and the formation of WME Group. The Silver Lake team has proven time and again that they are all-in on representation and content, and our clients, partners, and employees will thrive under our new structure,” added Mark Shapiro, Managing Partner of WME Group.
“I am grateful to Egon and the team at Silver Lake for the trust they have placed in me as a founder and entrepreneur. Together, we have created and enhanced a foundation unlike any other to accelerate value creation for clients and partners across WME Group and TKO, which I am excited to continue to build and grow,” stated Ari Emanuel, Executive Chairman of WME Group.
“Everything we built at Endeavor would not have been possible without the partnership of Egon and the entire Silver Lake team. Our industry is in the very early stages of generational transformation. I have never seen a more promising time for bold and ambitious entrepreneurs, creatives, and athletes,” said Patrick Whitesell.
The equity financing for the Endeavor take-private transaction includes equity from Silver Lake; additional capital from Mubadala Investment Company, DFO Management, LLC (the family investment office of Dell Technologies Founder, Chairman, and CEO Michael Dell and his family), Lexington Partners, funds managed by Goldman Sachs Asset Management, and CPP Investments; and equity rolled over by individuals including Emanuel, Whitesell, and Shapiro.
