WWE, UFC Merging to Form New Company
WWE has officially been sold to Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc., the parent company of UFC. Once the sale closes, WWE and UFC will merge into a new, publicly listed company….
WWE has officially been sold to Endeavor Group Holdings, Inc., the parent company of UFC. Once the sale closes, WWE and UFC will merge into a new, publicly listed company.
The news of the sale of WWE has long been in the works. Per a press release announcing the news, the new company will have Endeavor owning 51% controlling interest. The remaining 49% will be held by existing WWE shareholders. Altogether, the new live sports and entertainment company has a value of over $21 billion.
As for the leadership structure of this new company, the press release notes, "The new company will be led by [Ariel] Emanuel (Chief Executive Officer), who will also continue in his role as Chief Executive Officer of Endeavor, [Vince] McMahon (Executive Chairman of the Board of WWE) and Mark Shapiro, who will be President and Chief Operating Officer of both Endeavor and the new company. Dana White will continue in his role as President of UFC and Nick Khan will serve as President of WWE. The Board of Directors will consist of 11 members who will be appointed at a later date, six of whom will be appointed by Endeavor and five of whom by WWE."
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News of the merger comes less than 24 hours after the end of WrestleMania 39, which took place April 1 and 2 at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. WWE said in a press release this was "the most successful and highest-grossing event in company history." The sport entertainment giant reports the gate for WrestleMania 39 at $21.6 million. 161,892 fans filled SoFi Stadium over the course of two nights.
The press release also noted, "WrestleMania 39 became the most social WrestleMania of all-time, with over 500 million views and 11 million hours of video consumed over the two days, a 42 percent increase over last year."
WrestleMania 39 kicks off tomorrow, and the Showcase of the Immortals is going "Hollywood."
Taking place over the course of two nights on April 1 and 2, WrestleMania 39 will emanate from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Calif. The event will feature packed cards on both nights including Roman Reigns defending the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship against Cody Rhodes and Charlotte Flair defending the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship against Rhea Ripley
Additionally, fans will see a Hell in a Cell match between Edge and "The Demon" Finn Balor and a six-woman tag team match with Damage CTRL taking on Becky Lynch and WWE Hall of Famers Trish Stratus and Lita.
To celebrate "The Grandest Stage of Them All," here are 10 interesting facts about WrestleMania.
WrestleMania almost wasn't WrestleMania
Bryan Bedder/Getty ImagesLegendary WWE Hall of Fame ring announcer Howard Finkel is credited with coining the name “WrestleMania,” but before landing on that perfect name, Vince McMahon wanted to call his annual showcase “The Colossal Tussle.”
WrestleMania 35 was the first WrestleMania to be headlined by women.
Bryan Steffy/Getty ImagesIt took over three decades for women to headline “The Showcase of Immortals,” but it finally happened in WrestleMania 35 when Becky Lynch, Charlotte Flair and Ronda Rousey faced off in a Winner Takes All Triple Threat match for the WWE Raw Women's Championship and the WWE SmackDown Women's Championship.
Run-DMC provided a WrestleMania first.
Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesThe iconic rap group was the first act to ever perform at WrestleMania outside of the singing of the National Anthem and “America the Beautiful” when they performed “WrestleMania Rap” at WrestleMania 5. Many other acts have performed at WrestleMania since including Flo Rida, Diddy and Motorhead.
WrestleMania 2 is the only WrestleMania to happen on a weekday.
Paul Kane/Getty ImagesUp until WrestleMania 36, which saw the event split into a two-night affair, WrestleMania 2 was the only WrestleMania to not take place on a Sunday. Instead, it took place on Monday, April 7, 1986.
WrestleMania 28 holds the record for most PPV buys.
Taylor Hill/Getty ImagesThe WrestleMania that billed the "once in a lifetime" match between The Rock and John Cena saw 1,217,000 PPV buys, which is the most PPV buys for a single WrestleMania ever. Of course, that “once in a lifetime” tag wasn’t exactly true, and The Rock vs. John Cena would headline WrestleMania 29.
“Macho Man” Randy Savage has the record for most WrestleMania wins in a single night.
Frank Micelotta/Getty ImagesOH, YEAH! WrestleMania 4 featured a 14-man tournament for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. Savage would end up winning the title defeating Butch Reed, Greg Valentine, One Man Gang, and “Million Dollar Man” Ted DiBiase.
Longest match in WrestleMania history.
Steve Haag/Gallo Images, Jon Kopaloff/Getty ImagesThe legendary iron man match between Bret Hart and Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania XII still holds the record for longest WrestleMania match clocking in at one hour, one minute and 52 seconds.
Shortest match in WrestleMania history.
Jesse Grant/Getty ImagesThe shortest WrestleMania match happened in recent history at WrestleMania 32 when The Rock squashed Erick Rowan in just six seconds.
Most losses at WrestleMania.
Getty ImagesTriple H may be one of the most prolific wrestlers in WWE history, but he also has the notorious honor of having the most losses at WrestleMania with 13. Yikes!
Total attendance at WrestleMania.
Bill Olive/Getty ImagesOverall, a combined 1,956,981 fans have attended WrestleManias 1-38.
