WWE has gone through some major changes over the last few years as the company was acquired by Endeavor in 2023. Before the acquisition was made official several bids were made when the company went up for sale, and it appears that Tony Khan was in the mix.
Brandon Thurston of POST Wrestling is reporting court filings have been revealed via the ongoing WWE shareholder lawsuit that show Base 10, a company owned by Tony Khan, placed a bid on WWE when the company was up for sale in 2023.
Other bidders included Formula One parent company Liberty Media, private equity firm KKR, and Endeavor which eventually won the bid. It was noted that Base 10’s bid was the lowest of the four, and the bid prices were as follows:
– Base 10: $6.9 billion
– KKR: $8.0 billion to $8.7 billion
– Liberty Media: $8.5 billion to $8.9 billion
– Endeavor: $8.5 billion
Tony Khan was not directly mentioned in the suit, but court documents state, “Base 10 is the owner of All Elite Wrestling, a professional wrestling promotion that plainly would enjoy significant synergies with WWE.”
Florida business records show that BASE10, Inc. was incorporated in 2014, and Tony Khan is listed as the company’s sole officer. The company’s address is also listed as the stadium for the Jacksonville Jaguars, a team which is owned by the Khan family.
Tony Khan referenced his company Base 10 in Sports Business Journal after he acquired TruMedia Networks in 2015 when he said, “I have always been passionate about sports analytics, and this acquisition, and the formation of base10, allows me to continue exploring in-depth data analysis solutions and finding new and better ways to utilize data.”
The plaintiff shareholders allege that Endeavor was preselected by Vince McMahon because Ari Emanuel of Endeavor assured McMahon that he would have a future with the company. However, the defendants have denied those allegations.
The defendants in the shareholder class action lawsuit are listed as Vince McMahon, WWE President Nick Khan, Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque, as well as former board members and executives George Barrios and Michelle Wilson.