TKO Merges UFC® and WWE® Live Events Groups
May 23 2024 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Combined Unit Produces Hundreds of Live
Events Year-Round, Featuring Two of the World’s Most
Iconic Sports and Entertainment Properties
TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TKO), a premium sports and
entertainment company, today announced that it has integrated the
UFC and WWE Live Events teams into one unit, creating one of the
strongest live events portfolios in all of sports and
entertainment.
The integrated unit, the TKO Live Events Strategy Team,
will drive revenue growth strategies across key areas, including
live event development and scheduling, tourism incentive programs,
ticketing, and fan experiences. This new structure aligns with
TKO’s efforts to leverage the power and expertise of both UFC and
WWE to maximize event revenue potential and pursue growth
opportunities and cost synergies.
Peter Dropick, who has played an important role in
driving UFC’s industry leading live event success for nearly two
decades, and who is a pivotal member of the senior executive team
that has led UFC to five consecutive years of record revenue, has
been elevated to lead the integrated unit as Executive Vice
President, Event Development and Operations for TKO.
Dropick will work closely with UFC, WWE, and TKO leadership,
including UFC President and CEO Dana White, WWE Chief Content
Officer Paul Levesque, UFC COO Lawrence Epstein, WWE President Nick
Khan, and TKO CFO Andrew Schleimer, to leverage the
massive global popularity of UFC and WWE and continue to grow the
TKO live events business domestically and internationally.
“Demand for live sports and entertainment has never been
stronger, and we believe our portfolio of events will continue to
drive the growth of our business,” said Andrew Schleimer, Chief
Financial Officer, TKO. “The newly integrated TKO Live
Events Strategy Team will focus on creating operational
efficiencies and developing strategies to leverage the broader
economic benefits we bring to host cities, including partnering
with local governments and maximizing revenue opportunities from
site fees.”
In Q1 2024, UFC and WWE each set numerous live event attendance
and revenue records, helping to fuel TKO’s strong start for the
year. UFC sold out all five events with live audiences, including
UFC 297 in Toronto, UFC’s highest-grossing arena event in Canada;
UFC 298 in Anaheim, the highest grossing MMA event ever in
California; and UFC 299 in Miami, setting the arena record and
ranking among the highest-grossing UFC events of all time. WWE’s
Premium Live Events in the quarter – Royal Rumble and Elimination
Chamber – delivered record gross gate revenue. Royal Rumble broke
the all-time attendance record for Tropicana Field in St.
Petersburg, Fla., and Elimination Chamber in Perth brought out more
than 52,000 fans to mark WWE’s first Australia event since 2018 as
part of an agreement with Tourism Western Australia. In total, WWE
events in Q1 set 54 individual market records for both gross and
paid tickets across all event types, including 17 consecutive
sell-outs for televised events.
Following the quarter’s close, the momentum continued in April,
as WrestleMania 40 drew its largest-ever viewership and set a WWE
gate record with 145,000 fans over two days at Philadelphia’s
Lincoln Financial Field. The next weekend, UFC 300 became one of
the highest-grossing events in UFC history, recording a gate of
$16.5 million and setting a UFC attendance record at T-Mobile Arena
in Las Vegas, with 20,067 fans.
About TKO
TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: TKO) is a premium sports and
entertainment company. TKO includes UFC, the world’s premier mixed
martial arts organization, and WWE, the recognized global leader in
sports entertainment. Together, our organizations reach more than 1
billion households in approximately 210 countries and territories,
and we organize more than 300 live events year-round, attracting
more than two million fans. TKO is majority owned by Endeavor Group
Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: EDR), a global sports and entertainment
company.
About UFC®
UFC® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization
(MMA), with more than 700 million fans and approximately 260
million social media followers. The organization produces more than
40 live events annually in some of the most prestigious arenas
around the world while broadcasting to over 900 million TV
households across more than 170 countries. UFC’s athlete roster
features the world’s best MMA athletes representing more than 80
countries. The organization’s digital offerings include UFC FIGHT
PASS®, one of the world’s leading streaming services for combat
sports. UFC is part of TKO Group Holdings (NYSE: TKO) and is
headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. For more information, visit
UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC and @UFC on X, Snapchat,
Instagram, and TikTok: @UFC.
About WWE®
WWE® is an integrated media organization and the recognized
global leader in sports entertainment. The company consists of a
portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52
weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to
family-friendly entertainment on its television programming,
premium live events, digital media, and publishing platforms. WWE’s
TV-PG programming can be seen in more than 1 billion households
worldwide in 25 languages through world-class distribution partners
including NBCUniversal, FOX Sports, TNT Sports, Sony India and
Rogers. The award-winning WWE Network includes all Premium Live
Events, scheduled programming and a massive video-on-demand library
and is currently available in approximately 165 countries. In the
United States, NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, is the
exclusive home to WWE Network. WWE is part of TKO Group Holdings
(NYSE: TKO). Additional information on WWE can be found at wwe.com
and corporate.wwe.com.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240522495809/en/
Media Contacts: UFC Chris Bellitti CBellitti@ufc.com
WWE Greg Domino Greg.Domino@wwecorp.com
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