IMG Worldwide to Acquire ISP Sports

IMG Worldwide plans to acquire ISP Sports, a U.S. collegiate media rights management company. Once approved, IMG's college division will serve as the exclusive licensing agent for more than 200 collegiate properties.

Properties involved in the pending acquisition are the Bowl Championship Series, The Rose Bowl, the Heisman Trophy and the NCAA, as well as a slew of U.S. colleges and universities (Arizona State, Baylor, Duke, Georgia Tech, Notre Dame, UCLA and Wake Forest).

"We are very pleased to add ISP Sports to IMG's college sports business," says Ted Forstmann, chairman and chief executive officer of IMG.  "Ben Sutton [founder and chief executive officer of ISP Sports] and his team have built a terrific company, representing some of the most prominent names in college athletics. This acquisition will complement our existing college business, which is an increasingly significant part of IMG, and demonstrates our continued focus on investing in businesses that provide substantial future growth opportunities for IMG. It will also be terrific for the college sports fan as this combination provides a great opportunity for us to provide more, better and higher quality programming, as well as expanding the base of customers."

Sutton will be transitioned into the role of president of the newly combined businesses for day-to-day operation and development of the IMG College operation. In addition, Pat Battle, senior corporate vice president of IMG, will be appointed to the new position chairman of the IMG College division. Sutton and Battle will report to George Pyne, president of IMG's Sports and Entertainment group.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, however the Wall Street Journal is reporting the transaction to be valued between $80 million and $100 million.