Endeavor’s publicly traded TKO Group has named Dwayne Johnson to its board of administrators, efficient right this moment. The WWE celebrity has additionally secured full possession of the trademarked identify The Rock.
TKO is the guardian firm of WWE and UFC.
The identify The Rock is derived from his father, WWE Hall of Famer Rocky Johnson, who was the primary Black champion in WWE historical past (alongside associate Tony Atlas). Johnson’s grandfather, Peter Maivia, a Samoan-American skilled wrestler, was posthumously inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2008.
Rock and WWE have inked a merchandising settlement that gives for promotion, licensing, and different companies.
“I am thrilled to partner with Dwayne and welcome his immense talent to TKO’s Board. Dwayne brings an incredible track record of creating content and building globally recognized consumer brands, and he will play a key role in realizing our ambitions for TKO,” mentioned TKO (and Endeavor) CEO Ariel Emanuel.
“Very few people on the planet understand the convergence of sports, entertainment, media, and business like Rock,” mentioned TKO govt chair Vince McMahon, who bought WWE to Endeavor final yr.
The Rock, one of the crucial embellished WWE superstars ever, a worldwide social media icon and Hollywood star, mentioned, “My grandfather, High Chief Peter Maivia, and my dad, Rocky ‘Soulman’ Johnson, would’ve never thought this day would come. Which is why I’m very humbled to have a seat at the table that has decades of history and family legacy for me. A table that my family helped to build. Being on the TKO Board of Directors, and taking full ownership of my name, ‘The Rock’, is not only unprecedented, but incredibly inspiring as my crazy life is coming full circle.”
“At my core, I’m a builder who builds for and serves the people, and Ari is building something truly game changing. I’m very motivated to help continue to globally expand our TKO, WWE, and UFC businesses as the worldwide leaders in sports and entertainment — while proudly representing so many phenomenal athletes and performers who show up every day putting in the hard work with their own two hands to make their dreams come true and deliver for our audiences. I’ve been there, I’m still there and this is for them,” he mentioned.
Johnson’s enterprise portfolio contains Seven Bucks Productions, Teremana Tequila, ZOA Energy, Under , Armour and a line of health attire beneath the Project Roc model. In 2020, he co-led a consortium to amass the XFL, an expert American soccer league, which re-launched in 2023 earlier than merging with the USFL to type the UFL.
The TKO announcement mentioned the appointment of Johnson “reflects TKO’s commitment to delivering long-term value and strong performance for shareholders through strategic growth initiatives across both UFC and WWE.”
Separately, TKO additionally named Brad Keywell to its board, shifting it to 13 administrators from 11.
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