This morning (Aug. 5), WWE announced the person who will take on most of the responsibilities that were handled by Michelle Wilson & George Barrios prior to their firing in January of this year.
Nick Khan joins the company as President and Chief Revenue Officer, reporting directly to Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon. Khan has worked with WWE as a client while the co-head of CAA’s television division; he was a key figure in negotiations that landed the company its billion dollar TV deals with Fox and NBCUniversal in 2018. The 45 year is said to be leaving CAA on good terms.
One of the biggest agents in sports broadcasting - he represented names like Colin Cowherd & Jalen Rose, and organizations like college football power conference the SEC & Top Rank Boxing - Khan spoke to John Ourand of Sports Business Journal about the decision to join WWE, which really took shape when he and his wife attended Triple H’s 50th birthday party:
“We looked around the room and said, ‘It’s really kind of them to consider us friends.’ For a family-run business — albeit a publicly traded one — it just felt right. At that moment, I started thinking, ‘I wonder if there’s something bigger and better to do with them.’
“There had been interesting opportunities other than being an agent that had come my way over the last few years. I never really contemplated any of them seriously. When this opportunity emerged, it seemed like a no-brainer.”
As for the issue everyone is looking for answers for, WWE’s declining television audience, Khan put that off for now:
“The first thing I want to do is figure out where the bathrooms are. We all have a lot of ideas in our head. It might be a little premature to share them in terms of when we are going to execute those.”
It’s the second marquee hire for McMahon of late. Former Etsy CFO Kristina Salen was brought on-board in the same role last month.
Will is shake-up the way they do business? And the product fans see 3 - 4 nights a week?
Stay tuned.
Here’s WWE’s press release:
WWE® Names Nick Khan President & Chief Revenue Officer
STAMFORD, Conn.—(BUSINESS WIRE)— WWE (NYSE: WWE) today announced that Nick Khan, former Co-Head of Television at Creative Artists Agency (CAA), has been named President & Chief Revenue Officer, reporting directly to WWE Chairman & CEO Vince McMahon.
“Nick is a seasoned media executive with a deep understanding of our business and a proven track record of generating significant value for sports and entertainment properties,” said McMahon. “While representing WWE at CAA, he was instrumental in transforming our business model by securing domestic media rights increases of 3.6x over our previous agreements. Nick’s management style and personal demeanor are perfect for WWE’s entrepreneurial culture, and he will fit right in with our exceptional management team.”
“I am very much looking forward to expanding my relationship with Vince McMahon and the entire team at WWE, and becoming a full-time member of the WWE family,” said Khan. “It’s rare to have an opportunity to work at a company that is not only legendary in what it has already accomplished, but also uniquely poised to enter into an unprecedented phase of growth and expansion across all lines of business. Our collective industry experience will enable us to extract maximum value across the portfolio globally while driving long-term shareholder value.”
Khan, a former practicing attorney, transitioned to International Creative Management (ICM) in 2006 where he launched their Sports Media department and represented the biggest names in sports broadcasting. In 2012, Khan moved to CAA where he became the Co-Head of the Television Department. During his tenure there, Khan continued to represent the top broadcasters while also representing WWE, the Southeastern Conference (SEC), Top Rank Boxing and others helping to negotiate billions of dollars in media deals on their behalf.