WWE Layoffs Likely Coming Under Endeavor

Endeavor

Following Endeavor’s acquisition of WWE and an upcoming merger with the UFC, it sounds like layoffs are all but inevitable.

Endeavor president Mark Shapiro, who will also be the president and COO of the new WWE/UFC merged company making him third in then hierarchy, had recently told Sports Business Journal that the plan with the WWE acquisition would be to “run the UFC playbook”

In a new interview with Puck, Shapiro has expanded on what that could mean.

Puck’s article written by Dylan Byers includes the following:

In essence, Endeavor will run the same playbook it did for UFC, which has grown considerably since the acquisition, to $1.3 billion in revenue last year.

The first target, as is almost always the case with mergers, will be synergies: layoffs and operational efficiencies.

Shapiro himself was then quoted as saying:

“Anything from HR to finance to legal to communications production to distribution and marketing. Across every area, you’re going to find cost synergies; you’re going to integrate and ultimately highlight and appoint the best and brightest teams.”

Shapiro revealed that he didn’t actually know the deal was done until Saturday, April 1, and that the bid was placed three weeks prior.

He described it as “nip and tuck all the way”, as rival bidder Liberty Media – which owns Formula One – was also in the running.

As mentioned, Shapiro will be the president and COO of the new WWE/UFC merged company, with the two people above him being Vince McMahon as Executive Chairman, and of course Ari Emanuel at the top as CEO.

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• Layoffs
• Mark Shapiro
• endeavor
• wwe

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