Media

Wasserman Media in talks to buy Lagardère Sport and Entertainment


Wasserman Media Group, which represents sports stars from the NBA’s Russell Westbrook to Megan Rapinoe of the US women’s football team, is in talks to buy the sports marketing arm of France’s Lagardère, according to people informed on the discussions.

The two sides have entered into a period of exclusive discussions about a deal that may value Lagardère Sport and Entertainment at around $250m to $300m, though these people cautioned there was no guarantee that a deal would be reached.

The Lagardère subsidiary sells television rights for live sports around the world, organises sports events, and represents athletes such as tennis player Caroline Wozniacki and golfer Phil Mickelson.

The wider company operates the Aelia duty-free stores, a number of French television and radio channels, the Hachette book publishing imprint and Paris Match magazine, among its many operations.

A sale by the family-controlled French company, run by Arnaud Lagardère, would come as it has faced pressure from activist investor Amber Capital to improve its governance and speed up its disposal programme.

For Los Angeles-based Wasserman, the deal would allow the US sports marketing and talent agency to build out its presence globally in a series of complementary categories.

Founded and led by Casey Wasserman, the grandson of Hollywood mogul Lew Wasserman, the agency competes with rivals such as Ari Emanuel’s Endeavor and TPG-backed CAA — all of whom have been searching for ways to expand internationally.

Endeavor had been linked to a bid for the unit last year, a person close to the talks previously told the Financial Times.

A spokesperson for Wasserman declined to comment, while Lagardère did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Lagardère’s sports division has been under pressure after losing out on a key contract that sustained the business over recent years and was marked for a sale by the company in November. At the time, the company reported that pre-tax profits for Lagardère’s sports division were €206m, down from €265m a year earlier.

Last July, the Asian football confederation announced it signed an eight year commercial rights deal with China’s Wuhan DDMC Culture Company starting from 2021, taking hold of a contract that is currently held by Lagardère Sports.

People close to the talks suggested DDMC paid well over $2bn for the AFC’s rights, well above Lagardère’s current contract worth a reported $1bn. Lagardère responded by conducting a number of deals to sustain revenues and profits at current levels, even after the AFC contract expires in 2020.

Last week Lagardère Sport and Entertainment chief executive Andrew Georgiou was named president of Eurosport, which is owned by rival media group, Discovery.

Additional reporting by Harriet Agnew in Paris



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