The former co-presidents of WWE, George Barrios, and Michelle Wilson, have launched an investment company called Isos Capital Management focusing on sports, media, and entertainment companies.
Barrios and Wilson were among the most powerful people in WWE after being promoted to co-presidential status in 2018. In a shocking move, the two were let go by the company in January 2020 causing a giant stock drop. Frank Riddick III was installed as an interim CFO and later that year, Nick Khan was hired as its new president and chief revenue officer with Kristina Salen hired as its CFO.
Each played a significant role in negotiations for WWE’s current domestic television rights deals with NBC Universal and Fox, worth a reported $465 million annually through late 2024.
The press release shared the following goals for the group with their start-up:
The Isos Co-Founders plan to invest in businesses that fit their thesis of mega trends shaping the industry and provide value creation through brand growth, digital transformation and globalization. Isos will target early, growth and late stage media, entertainment and sports companies and will consider a variety of investment vehicles.
Wilson gave the following quote regarding their plans with the group:
There is no better time to invest in the industry and we believe Isos offers a distinct advantage in the marketplace. We are a firm built by operators for operators, and we bring proven strategies and innovative thinking to help media, entertainment and sports companies win in the long term. George and I have worked together for more than a decade and have demonstrated how to achieve game-changing results in an evolving landscape. We look forward to utilizing our experience, insights, network and capital to partner with management teams to accelerate growth and better meet consumer needs.
