Ari Emanuel has claimed that TKO will never be sold.
In 2023, Vince McMahon orchestrated the sale of WWE to Endeavor – now known as WME Group. As part of the sale, WWE merged with Zuffa, UFC’s parent company, to form TKO Group Holdings.
With TKO existing in an environment where sales and mergers are a regular occurence, many believe it is inevitable that another media company will someday add it to its portfolio. However, when this was put to its Executive Chairman, Ari Emanuel, he denied a sale would ever happen.
During an interview with Matt Belloni, Emanuel was asked who the ideal buyer for TKO would be, and he replied with “TKO”, arguing it would never be for sale. Emanuel believes that, with the advent of AI, in the future people are going to have more and more free time, which will lead them to consume more entertainment. He went on to say that this means the value of sports assets will only go up.
“There’s going to be more free time than ever. If we grow at 3% GDP, we’re going to have more money than we’ve ever had with AI in my opinion, I agree with that, take out all the bad things that could happen.“So you’re sitting in a situation that there’s going to be more time for people to consume entertainment or be social animals. Go out, go to sporting events, consume sports. Sports is the greatest reality show of all time.“Owning sports assets — now people are trying to own teams — we own four leagues. It’s an incredible asset. The value is only going up and to the right. There’s no chance [TKO will be sold] Zero.”
WWE Shareholder Lawsuit Ended In Settlement
The sale of WWE to Endeavor was not without issue, as shareholders of the company soon launched a lawsuit claiming Vince McMahon and other executives breached their fiduciary duties as the deal they were seeking benefited McMahon but not the shareholders.
The shareholders believed their shares should have been worth far more, but McMahon’s decision-making was influenced by Ari Emanuel’s promise that he would continue to have a role after the merger.
Shortly before the case went to trial, however, all parties involved reached a settlement agreement.
