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TKO Group Shares 2023 Financial Results For WWE & UFC, Revenue Hits $1.7 Billion

By James Holder • Published 27th February 2024
UFC TKO WWE New York Stock Exchange

2023 was a huge year for WWE and UFC.

The TKO Group has shared its financial results for 2023 after the company was formed in September thanks to a merger between WWE and UFC.

In the results, CEO Ari Emanuel said the group was “off to a strong start” following “record financial performance.”

You can find an excerpt from the report below.

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– TKO Group Holdings, Inc. (“TKO” or the “Company”) (NYSE: TKO) today announced financial results for its year ended December 31, 2023. The reported results presented in this earnings release cover the period from January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023 for Ultimate Fighting Championship (“UFC”) and the period from September 12, 2023 through December 31, 2023 for World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (“WWE”).

“TKO is off to a strong start following record financial performance in 2023 at both UFC and WWE,” said Ariel Emanuel, CEO of TKO. “We secured Anheuser-Busch as the official beer partner of UFC, delivered a transformative deal to bring WWE’s Raw to Netflix beginning in 2025, and expanded our international footprint in important growth markets. We have more conviction than ever in the combination of these businesses and TKO’s ability to drive topline growth and margin expansion, generate meaningful free cash flow, and deliver sustainable long-term value for shareholders.”

Full Year Consolidated Results

  • Revenue increased 47%, or $534.9 million, to $1.7 billion. The increase reflected an increase of $152.1 million at UFC, to $1.3 billion, and the contribution of $382.8 million of revenue at WWE associated with the period from September 12, 2023 through December 31, 2023.
  • Net Income was $175.7 million, a decrease of $213.3 million from $389.0 million in the prior year period. The decrease primarily reflected an increase in operating expenses partially offset by the increase in revenue. The increase in operating expenses primarily reflected an increase in selling, general and administrative expenses of $339.0 million, an increase in direct operating costs of $189.0 million, an increase in depreciation and amortization of $104.6 million, and an increase in interest expense of $99.4 million. To a lesser extent, higher income taxes also contributed to the decrease in net income.
  • Adjusted EBITDA 1 increased 29%, or $180.4 million, to $809.1 million, due to an increase of $75.1 million at UFC and the contribution of $163.0 million of Adjusted EBITDA at WWE associated with the period from September 12, 2023 through December 31, 2023, partially offset by an increase of $57.7 million in corporate expenses.
  • Cash flows generated by operating activities were $468.4 million, a decrease of $33.3 million from $501.7 million, primarily due to lower net income.
  • Free Cash Flow2 was $419.8 million, a decrease of $69.5 million from $489.3 million, primarily due to the decrease in cash flows generated by operating activities and an increase in capital expenditures, which was primarily related to WWE’s new headquarter facility.
  • Cash and cash equivalents were $235.8 million as of December 31, 2023. Gross debt was $2.761 billion as of December 31, 2023.

WWE Agrees Deal For Tama Tonga

The news comes after it was reported that WWE had signed Tama Tonga.

After spending the best part of 14 years with New Japan, Tama Tonga announced after a huge win at Wrestle Kingdom in January that he would be leaving the company. The star explained that he wanted to continue his career in the United States in order to be closer to his wife and children.