WWE makes merger deal with UFC parent company Endeavor

It was an announcement that most fans of the WWE have been waiting for since the announcement was made that WWE was looking to marginalize its profits and sale. A potential sale announcement could be made as soon as Monday as WWE Chairman Vince McMahon is in negotiations with UFC’s parent company Endeavor.

Endeavor will own 51% of the new combat sports and entertainment company, while WWE shareholders would get 49%. The Endeavor deal gives WWE an enterprise value of $9.3 billion, The 77-year-old McMahon retired from WWE in July amid a sexual harassment and hush-money scandal but returned in January by using his status as the majority voting stockholder to push his way back on the board of directors as executive chairman in order to oversee a potential sale of the company.

In the oncoming deal Ari Emanuel is expected to act as chief executive of both Endeavor and the new company. McMahon is expected to be executive chairman, while Endeavor President Mark Shapiro will also work in the same role at the new company. Dana White will remain as president of UFC, while WWE CEO Nick Khan will serve as president of the wrestling business.

This is huge news in the world of combat sports. First this deal would mean an end in WWE’s decades-old status as a family-run business. For Endeavor they bring in a huge cash cow. WWE has a huge media and live events business, along with its decade's worth of intellectual property. The company generated $1.29 billion in revenue last year.

Last year, the UFC helped Endeavor’s sports business make $1.3 billion in revenue. Endeavor’s market cap stood at about $10.53 billion as of Friday. The Endeavor-WWE deal values UFC at more than $12 billion.