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Tesla CEO Elon Musk plans to join the board of directors of Endeavor Group Holdings, the parent company of UFC.
An article published by the New York Post broke the news of Musk's addition to Endeavor. The entertainment conglomerate aims to file paperwork next month to launch its IPO and takeover UFC completely. Currently, Endeavor owns 50.1% of the MMA promotion.
The New York Post article also revealed that Endeavor cited Elon Musk's 'professional background and experience running a public company, previously held senior executive-level positions, his service on other public company boards, and his experience starting, growing, and integrating businesses' as the reason behind his addition to its board.
Elon Musk's addition to the board of Endeavor Group Holdings is the second most significant event in 2021. An article published by Sportico earlier in March broke the news of Endeavor's filing of confidential paperwork for an initial public offering with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Elon Musk's addition and a series of UFC super cards aim at strengthening the brand value
Endeavor Group Holdings is a global entertainment conglomerate that bought the UFC in 2016 for $4.025 Billion - the biggest acquisition in sports at the time. Endeavor buying UFC marked the end of the Zuffa era. Endeavor also owns talent firm WME and also produces movies and Miss Universe pageants.
The first attempt to take Endeavor public was made in 2019. However, market weakness and investor concerns about Endeavor's growth caused the company to pull the IPO back one day before its launch.
A major concern for Endeavor was its dependence on UFC. Over a fourth of the company's profits come from UFC and MMA's perceived struggles to become a mainstream sport was one of the primary reasons behind investors' concerns about the IPO.
Many have speculated that UFC's attempts to bring Khabib Nurmagomedov out of retirement and the series of super-cards could be an attempt to strengthen the promotion's brand to ensure a successful launch of its IPO.
