World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) have combined to form a $21.4 billion sports entertainment company. Under this merger, Endeavor Group Holdings Inc. will have the majority share of 51% with the remaining 49% owned by WWE stakeholders and investors. With their strong track records in value creation and innovation and both brands bringing something to the table, Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel is confident that this merger will be a success.
Vince McMahon, Chairman of the WWE Board, commented that being merged with UFC together would give them more leverage in the entertainment industry and greater leverage to maximize media and sponsorship deals. He also expressed his confidence in Endeavor to take the company to the next level. The new company will be headed by Arie Emanuel with McMahon continuing as the Executive Chairman and Dana White as the President of UFC.
Being a family owned business, McMahon announced his retirement in July and had since passed on the leadership to his daughter Stephanie who resigned from her role as Co-CEO and Chairwoman before the merger. Former WWE star Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque will serve as the chief content officer of the company. After the merger, an immense growth in the digital and social media views was seen in January and February of this year, up from 15% from the same period last year.
With its signature show ‘Monday Night Raw’ airing on the USA Network and ‘Friday Night Smackdown’ broadcastinged by FOX, the company has now extended its reach to 180 countries with the streaming service ‘the WWE Network’.
The merger is set to bring more opportunities and possibilities for WWE and UFC fans around the world and is just another milestone in the company’s history of success and entertainment.
 has merged with Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) to form a powerful new sports entertainment company. With the majority 51% share held by Endeavor Group Holdings Inc. and 49% by WWE shareholders and investors, the combination promises innovation and value creation. Arie Emanuel is confident that the merger will be successful. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon and UFC President Dana White are both involved in the venture.){kind=link}