The Art of Ari’s WWE Deal & Licht’s Zucker Turn

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Welcome back to In the Room, my biweekly private email on the inner workings of the media industry. Tonight, the inside story on Ari and Mark’s WWE deal. Plus, some news and notes on CNN’s return to Trump.

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The Art of Ari’s WWE Deal

Discussing deal points in a suite at Wrestlemania, a secret meeting at Raine, and an emotional pitch in Stamford: How Vince McMahon scored big and Endeavor took the next step in its leverage journey. Plus, some notes on CNN and Chris Licht 2.0.

DYLAN BYERS

“Until Saturday, I didn’t even know we had this deal,” Mark Shapiro, the president and C.O.O. of Endeavor, told me today. Three weeks earlier, Shapiro and C.E.O. Ari Emanuel had placed a bid to acquire a majority stake in World Wrestling Entertainment, or WWE, the coveted live pseudo-sports asset that seemed like it could fit nicely into Endeavor’s portfolio, alongside its lucrative Ultimate Fighting business.

Not long ago, the markets derided Shapiro and Emanuel for their interest in red state sports-ish leagues, like UFC and Professional Bull Riders, which Endeavor (then WME-IMG) bought in 2015. But as more streamers have begun dabbling in live sports broadcasting, media rights deals...

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