Endeavor to sell OpenBet and IMG Arena in $450m management buyout
CEO Ari Emanuel joined by OpenBet boss Jordan Levin in buyout deal as Endeavor looks to offload sports betting segment before being taken private by Silver Lake next year
Endeavor has announced it is selling its sports betting assets OpenBet and IMG Arena to OB Global Holdings after a $450m (£350.8m) buyout backed by Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel.
OpenBet CEO Jordan Levin has also participated in the buyout, which Endeavor confirmed is “a necessary step” towards closing a deal with equity firm Silver Lake to take the group private for a fee of $13bn, as announced in April.
As per Endeavor’s announcement, released on Monday, 11 November, the buyout will be financed through a “mix of cash and debt” and is expected to close immediately, prior to completion of the Silver Lake transaction in Q1 2025.
OpenBet CEO Levin issued an optimistic update regarding the legacy sports betting supplier’s future.
He said: “This management buyout allows us to continue executing our vision for increased market expansion and product innovation.
“Our group is extremely confident in OpenBet’s future considering the premium product offering, superior talent and solid foundation we already have in place following a strong period of business growth.”
Endeavor bosses will continue to market IMG ARENA “for a sale to a third-party purchaser” during both the sign-to-close period and after closing.
IMG Arena provides live streaming and data feeds across multiple sports and covers more than 65,000 events.
Endeavor was advised by Oakvale Capital and the Raine Group and, following the update, the company closed trading on Monday at $28.90 per share, though a slight increase is anticipated today, Tuesday 12 November, according to pre-market estimates.
Currently, OpenBet helps power more than 200 sports betting and igaming operators worldwide, including DraftKings, FanDuel, Sky Bet, Ladbrokes and William Hill.
Upon completion of the transaction, Levin will remain as OpenBet CEO.
Endeavor first announced its intention to purchase OpenBet in September 2021 for $1.2bn from what was then Scientific Games.
However, that figure dropped to approximately $800m in June 2022 ($750m cash and $50m in Endeavor Class A common stock) following additional negotiations between the two firms.
OpenBet was acquired to work alongside sports data provider IMG Arena to capitalise on the company’s sportsbook offering.
In February this year, OpenBet and IMG Arena were officially integrated, and a strategic review of the IMG Arena business was conducted by Endeavor.
Just two months later, the take-private deal with Silver Lake was announced, with that transaction anticipated to close in Q1 2025.
Endeavor then confirmed in its Q2 results in August it was looking for a buyer for both OpenBet and IMG Arena.
Since news of Silver Lake’s plans to acquire Endeavor was released, the latter has parted ways with a number of assets including On Location, IMG and PBR, all of which were sold for $3.25bn to its subsidiary TKO Group Holdings, established in 2023 as part of a merger between the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
TKO Group Holdings is not involved in the agreement with Silver Lake.