Endeavor Acquires On Location Experiences in $660M Deal

Endeavor has acquired premium hospitality firm On Location Experiences.

On Location stages auxiliary experiences for fans and corporate clients around big events in sports, music, fashion and entertainment. As the official hospitality partner of the NFL, it executive produced the Bud Light Super Bowl Music Fest last year, featuring artists such as Cardi B, Bruno Mars, Post Malone and Aerosmith and offered fan ticket and travel packages for the league’s international games in London and Mexico City.

On Location was originally part of the NFL, which remains a minority shareholder with a seat on its board of directors. Since 2015, it had been privately held by RedBird Capital Partners, Bruin Sports Capital, the Carlyle Group and the NFL’s investment arm, 32 Equity. “We are excited to partner with Endeavor to grow On Location Experiences globally,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday in a statement.

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With the acquisition, valued at $660 million, Endeavor gains an official strategic partnership with the NFL, while On Location greatly boosts its synergy opportunities with the multiplatform talent represented by Endeavor’s agencies, which include WME and IMG. Endeavor has already been doing premium hospitality work, particularly around its owned brands, such as the UFC and New York Fashion Week, and that business will be integrated with On Location.

“By bringing together a leader like On Location with Endeavor’s access and reach, we can advance the way consumers and brands think about money-can’t-buy experiences,” said Endeavor CEO Ariel Emanuel. “Partnering with the NFL will enable us to leverage the best-in-class executions around one of the biggest events in the world, the Super Bowl, and extend this same level of service and experiences to other sports and entertainment properties globally.”

Paul Caine, a former chief revenue officer at Bloomberg, CEO at Westwood One and executive vp, chief revenue officer and group president at Time Inc., will lead Endeavor’s newly integrated hospitality entity. On Location CEO John Collins, who has served in the post for four years, will advise On Location and Endeavor through the integration period.

Endeavor is advised by Latham & Watkins (legal) and The Raine Group (financial). Legal advisors for On Location and the NFL are Paul Hastings and Ropes & Gray, respectively.