The "street value" of WWE revealed by veteran and it's astonishingly way lesser than the $9.3 billion Endeavor paid (Exclusive)
Endeavor purchasing WWE for $9.3 billion caught many people off guard in the wrestling fraternity due to the company's high valuation. While speaking on Sportskeeda's YouTube channel, Vince Russo noted that the promotion's "street value" was $6.5 billion, but he wasn't surprised to see Ari Emanuel seemingly overpay for the wrestling juggernaut.
As announced recently, Endeavor acquired World Wrestling Entertainment and merged it with the UFC, forming a new company now worth nearly $21 billion. Rumors of WWE being up for sale had been making rounds since the beginning of the year, but the swift takeover of Endeavor wasn't something many expected.
The substantial amount of money spent to get a 51% stake in Vince McMahon's company further raised eyebrows online, but Vince Russo explained why it made sense from Ari Emanuel's point of view.
"Do you know what the street value of the WWE was? They sold it for $9.3 Billion. Do you know what the street value was? The street value was $6.5 Billion. The guy (Ari Emanuel) is convinced that I'm going to take this WWE model, and I'm going to slide it right into the UFC model. That's all he cares about. That is it!" stated Russo. [5:18 - 5:42]
The former writer then stated that despite the product not being the greatest over the past few years, it probably didn't matter to Endeavor or their planned business model for the wrestling promotion moving forward.
Russo was confident that if Ari Emanuel sat down to watch an entire episode of RAW, he would certainly not enjoy it but, at the same time, would also have no regrets about buying WWE.
"The product has been god awful, and it doesn't matter because he is making his money. I guarantee you that if Ari Emanuel sat down and watched RAW, nobody can convince me that Ari Emanuel would say, 'This is a good show.' Nobody, bro." [3:06 - 3:33]
He sees the potential in the WWE: Vince Russo on Endeavor's Ari Emanuel
Since being taken over by Endeavor, UFC's revenue has seen tremendous growth, and Ari Emanuel has been credited with boosting the fortunes of the Dana White-led MMA promotion.
Vince Russo felt that Ari would use the "same ingredients" in the pro wrestling space that helped him take the UFC to a different level financially. Russo further noted that the quality of the weekly shows didn't matter as long as the company continued making money.
Emanuel has proven to be a master at improving overall profits, and Vince expects the same to happen in WWE's case while also having no hope of seeing the booking change for the better.
"It doesn't matter whether it's a good show or not. He sees the potential in the WWE. He grew the UFC four times over. He said we're going to use the same equation, the same ingredients. So that's how he's looking at it, and really, this is what is so unfortunate for the fans. You and I have both been saying this. It has got nothing to do with what we're watching on TV on Monday nights." [3:36 - 4:08]
Will the merger be a long-term success for all involved parties? Sound off in the comments section below.
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