News

1 February 2012

ENDEMOL TO RESTRUCTURE SPORT BUSINESS

Endemol’s sports content will be brought in line with all other output and managed locally by its operating companies around the world.

Endemol, a world leader in entertainment programming, today announced that it is restructuring its international sports business.

The reorganisation will bring Endemol’s sports content in line with all other output, coming under the direct management of the group’s operating companies around the world, at local level.

After successfully building and integrating sport into Endemol’s global business, Managing Directors Gregg Oldfield and Lawrence Duffy will leave to pursue new ventures.

Under the new structure Endemol will pursue further growth in sports entertainment and current productions around the world will continue. 

Endemol Sport launched in January 2009 and under the management of Gregg and Lawrence has helped establish Endemol as a significant international player in sports entertainment.  The group’s projects around the world currently include the Dutch Premier League ‘Eredivisie’ channel in the Netherlands, the English Premier League channels for Abu Dhabi Media in the Middle East, The Guinness® Football Challenge™ Pan Africa, TV7 Sport channel inKazakhstan and numerous international media partnerships with sports bodies and football clubs.

Just Spee, Chief Financial Officer of Endemol Group comments: “Endemol’s Sport’s output has grown to a level where we need to bring it in line with how we develop and produce all our other content internationally.  This new structure will allow us to continue building our business in this genre whilst delivering the best service to our clients at a local level.  We are extremely grateful to Gregg and Lawrence for the role they have played in making Endemol the international player in sports entertainment that it is today and we wish them all the very best for the future.”

Gregg and Lawrence commented: “We have enjoyed a fantastic 3 plus years at Endemol and created a valuable and successful sports media business from a standing start. The re-structuring makes sense and we are leaving behind  major, award winning sports channels and format productions in Abu Dhabi, Kazakhstan and Africa, as well as genuinely talented sports teams within The Group.  We are hugely grateful for the support of our many sports federation clients and we expect to make a further announcement about our future plans shortly.”