ATG Entertainment, the company that operates Liverpool's Empire Theatre, has been sold in a £4.5bn deal to billionaire UFC owner Ari Emanuel. The acquisition by Emanuel's Mari Group was confirmed in a statement on the company's website on August 11, subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions.
Deal details and ownership
ATG runs live entertainment operations at the Lime Street venue, as well as several other theatres across the country. The Liverpool ECHO understands the Empire Theatre building is owned by a registered charity called the Merseyside Trust Ltd (MTL), which has a sublet agreement with ATG for the management of commercial activities, as well as property care and maintenance. The deal with Mari does not impact MTL's ownership.
ATG operates a portfolio of 70 venues across the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, and Spain, including seven on Broadway and ten in London's West End, as well as an extensive network of regional theatres, including the Empire.
Future plans for venues
In terms of the future of venues like the Empire, Mari said it intends to act as a 'long-term custodian of ATG's theatres', and committed itself to investing in their 'preservation and modernisation', adding: "That commitment will extend across the entire portfolio, from the regional theatres to the West End and Broadway."
Across ATG's regional network, MARI's ambition is to build on the role these venues play in their communities, creating new opportunities for local artists and broadening access to live theatre.
Background on buyer
The acquisition of ATG is the largest to date by Emanuel's Mari Group, which was launched last year with $2bn of equity financing from investors including Apollo, RedBird Capital and the Qatar Investment Authority. Emanuel is best known as the head of A-list media agency WME Group, which has a raft of star clients including Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, Martin Scorsese and Angelina Jolie. He is also the founder and CEO of TKO Group Holdings, an American sports and entertainment company that owns the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
Responding to the deal with ATG, Emanuel said: "I've spent my whole career in entertainment, and I started out in theatre. I've seen the industry reinvent itself many times, but live has only grown more powerful. Nothing connects great talent with audiences more directly. ATG has built one of the world's great theatre businesses around that experience. This is a long-term bet on where live goes next."
The sale of ATG, first reported by the Financial Times, is believed to involve an approximate £4.5bn investment, although the exact financial terms have not yet been made public.
