Endeavor closes deal for 100 percent controlling interest over UFC ahead of planned IPO, Elon Musk joins board of directors
Endeavor has officially entered into an agreement to have 100 percent controlling interest over the UFC as part of the company’s plans to go public following a new filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
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Endeavor has entered into an agreement to obtain 100 percent controlling interest over the UFC.
The deal was revealed as part of a 300-page prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday as Endeavor Group Holdings officially moves towards taking the company public.
Here’s the disclosure as part of Endeavor’s massive prospectus ahead of a planned initial public offering (IPO) that will likely take place later this year.
“On February 16, 2021, Endeavor Operating Company entered into a Transaction Agreement with the Other UFC Holders and certain of their affiliates pursuant to which Endeavor Operating Company will directly or indirectly acquire equity interests in UFC Parent (including warrants of UFC Parent or common equity received by warrant holders from the exercise of warrants of UFC Parent) from the Other UFC Holders (or their affiliates) resulting in Endeavor Operating Company directly or indirectly owning 100% of the equity interests of UFC Parent (the “UFC Buyout”).
“We currently own 50.1% of UFC Parent’s common equity and have consolidated UFC Parent’s financial results from the date of the UFC acquisition in 2016.”
As part of the transactional buyout, some of the previous owners of the UFC stock will receive stock in Endeavor Group Holdings, which is the name of the conglomerate that will be going public. The prospectus also states that Endeavor will raise $1.7 billion to buy out the remainder of the UFC. But if the company doesn’t go public, the previous ownership structure will remain.
When Endeavor closed a deal to obtain a controlling interest in the UFC back in 2016 for just over $4 billion, the company partnered with several private equity firms to help raise the cash for the sale. Those private equity companies, including Silver Lake Partners, ended up owning around 40 percent of the UFC as a result.
This new buyout will now give Endeavor 100 percent controlling interest over the UFC, which helps to sweeten the pot as the company prepares to go public.
As part of the prospectus filed on Wednesday, Endeavor also reported $3.478 billion in revenue along with net income losses of $625 million in 2020, largely due to the coronavirus pandemic wiping out a large portion of their businesses. The UFC was a huge benefactor in helping Endeavor earn profits last year after the MMA promotion put on events ahead of any other major sport in the United States, making it a very successful 2020 for the company overall.