Silver Lake to Take Endeavor Private - Seite 2

Patrick Whitesell, Executive Chairman of Endeavor, said: “With Silver Lake’s continued partnership and support, Endeavor is ideally positioned to capitalize on compelling trends in media and entertainment, where global content spending has reached more than $200 billion per year. In a business where the only constant is change, I know Endeavor will continue to lead the industry forward.”

Mark Shapiro, President and Chief Operating Officer of Endeavor, said: “Endeavor’s assets and capabilities across entertainment, sports, fashion, and music are unparalleled. This transaction further enhances our ability to deliver category-defining deals and iconic events and experiences for clients, partners, and fans around the world. Egon, Stephen, and the broader Silver Lake team have been and will continue to be phenomenal partners in Endeavor’s journey, and we look forward to the road ahead.”

Stephen Evans, Managing Director of Silver Lake and a Director of Endeavor, said: “The team at Silver Lake is proud of our longstanding partnership with Endeavor, marked by more than $3.5 billion of direct investment across six distinct transactions over 12 years. We are excited about what we can achieve together in this next phase, spearheaded by Endeavor’s visionary expertise across talent representation and content and ownership of truly special, marquee assets in sports.”

The transaction builds on multiple investments Silver Lake has made in Endeavor starting with Silver Lake’s initial investment in William Morris Endeavor in 2012 and continuing through Endeavor’s subsequent acquisition of IMG in 2014 and initial public offering in 2021. Silver Lake also supported Endeavor’s acquisition of UFC in 2016 and the merger of UFC and WWE, creating premium sports and entertainment company TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TKO) (“TKO”) in 2023.

TKO is not party to this transaction and will remain a publicly traded company that will continue to benefit from its connectivity to Endeavor’s expertise, relationships, and significant capabilities.

TRANSACTION DETAILS

The premium value delivered by the transaction to Endeavor stockholders is substantially higher than the median premium in the low-to-mid-30% range paid in private equity sponsor take-privates larger than $10 billion in enterprise value over the last five years in the technology, media, entertainment, and telecommunications sector.