Endeavor Goes Private as Silver Lake Deal Closes: New Roles for Ari Emanuel, Mark Shapiro, Patrick Whitesell

Endeavor is private once more, as the $25 billion deal by Silver Lake closed Monday morning.

With the take-private complete, a slew of changes are in order. For starters, the newly-private businesses will go by WME Group, retiring the Endeavor name for public-facing purposes.

Ari Emanuel, who founded Endeavor in 1995 and most recently served as CEO of the public venture, will shift to a new role as executive chairman.

Mark Shapiro, who had been president and COO of Endeavor, will become president and managing partner, working in conjunction with Christian Muirhead and Richard Weitz, the WME co-chairs who will be co-chairmen of WME Group.

And as widely expected, former Endeavor executive chairman Patrick Whitesell will exit to launch a new venture backed by Silver Lake that will “invest in and scale properties and IP across sports, media, and entertainment.” When the take-private was announced a year ago, it was noted that Whitesell’s employment agreement included a provision for a new company backed by $250 million from Silver Lake.

Emanuel will continue as chairman and CEO of TKO Group Holdings, the public company that owns UFC and WWE, and Shapiro will continue as president and COO of TKO.

WME Group will include the WME agency, marketing firm 160over90, IMG licensing, and the unscripted studio Pantheon Media Group (formerly named Asylum Entertainment).

“This remarkable moment— and the even more exciting future it launches—is thanks first and foremost to Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell, and to the relentless and ambitious strategic vision they have shared for more than twenty years to build Endeavor into a global powerhouse across talent, brands, and IP spanning entertainment, media, and sports,” Silver Lake co-CEO Egon Durban said in a statement, adding that his firm has never sold a share in the company. “Silver Lake is proud and honored to be their partners since 2012 as they have continued to build the company. Over this period, revenue has grown by twentyfold. Silver Lake has previously invested on six separate occasions to support Endeavor and now, with this latest investment, it is the single largest position in our global portfolio.”

“Mark Shapiro is an impressive, hard charging, creative, and determined leader who is driving and orchestrating massive value creation,” he added. “We look forward to continuing our work and partnership with him and the rest of the management team — including Richard Weitz and Christian Muirhead at WME Group and Dana White, Andrew Schleimer, and the collective TKO leadership — all of whom are industry best.”

“Our ability to deliver landmark partnerships, career-defining business opportunities, and enduring cultural moments is amplified by this transaction and the formation of WME Group,” Shapiro added. “The Silver Lake team has proven time and again that they are all-in on representation and content, and our clients, partners, and employees will thrive under our new structure.”

“I am grateful to Egon and the team at Silver Lake for the trust they have placed in me as a founder and entrepreneur,” Emanuel added. “Together, we have created and enhanced a foundation unlike any other to accelerate value creation for clients and partners across WME Group and TKO, which I am excited to continue to build and grow.”

“Everything we built at Endeavor would not have been possible without the partnership of Egon and the entire Silver Lake team,” Whitesell said. “Our industry is in the very early stages of generational transformation. I have never seen a more promising time for bold and ambitious entrepreneurs, creatives, and athletes.”

“Silver Lake is enormously pleased and energized to partner and invest with Patrick in support of his new platform,” Durban added of the Whitesell venture.