WWE is looking at potentially selling the company by the middle of this year and has hired JPMorgan to help with talks.
Barron’s, the sister publication to the Wall Street Journal, reported today that AEW‘s Tony and Shad Khan are said to be interested in buying WWE. The article noted that the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund appears more likely to buy Vince McMahon‘s company. The Khan family “is in the pool of potential buyers for WWE.”
CNBC reported late Thursday night that AEW is interested in merging with WWE. Sources told the media outlet that AEW and WWE could partner with a strategic media company to share the intellectual property while merging the wrestling leagues.
The article noted that the idea is a long shot and that AEW hasn’t had any talks with WWE.
“The Khans are open to discussing a potential role for McMahon, 77, after a sale but haven’t yet had those talks, one of the people said. It’s unclear what type of job McMahon would want with WWE after a sale, but WWE is a much larger and more established organization than AEW.”
WWE previously announced it hired Raine Group as its lead financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis as its legal advisor while exploring the sale of the company ahead of negotiations for its TV rights that expire in 2024.
Disney, Comcast, Endeavor, and Netflix are among the companies believed to be interested in buying WWE.