Casey Wasserman is nearing a deal with Providence Equity to sell the remaining portion of his talent agency that he still owns for a reported $3.4 billion, according to published reports.
The move would boost the 60 percent that Providence purchased in 2022 and finally signal Wasserman’s exit from his namesake company that was rebranded as The Team in March.
Wasserman was named in the federal government’s files on Jeffrey Epstein, which prompted discussion of a sale as the agency’s reputation suffered publicly and some its clients cut ties with the business.
In February, Wasserman, who is also the chairman of LA28 and leading the Olympic effort for Los Angeles in 2028, said he would step down and sell his reported 40 percent of what was then known as the Wasserman Agency. He founded the company in 2002 which was around the time that the governments files showed that Wasserman flew on Epstein’s private plane that year and later exchanged several flirtatious emails with Ghislaine Maxwell.
Wasserman apologized to his employees in February and him stepping away was seen as a means to save the talent powerhouse that boasted a roster of clients that includes Coldplay, Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran, Pharrell, Lorde, and Imagine Dragons, with sports stars like Klay Thompson, Giancarlo Stanton, Alex Morgan, Megan Rapinoe, Paige Bueckers and Rickie Fowler.
No deal for Wasserman’s stake has been completed, according to The Puck, which first reported on the move on Thursday. In April, a deep list of suitors was said to have wanted Wasserman’s piece of the company or outright purchase The Team with United Talent Agency, private equity firms Bruin Capital, Permira and Arctos in the mix along with former Endeavor chairman Patrick Whitesell, co-founder of software company Avail, Chris Gilibert and a group with Alexis Ohanian.
A sale could give The Team a chance to further distance itself from its founder as Wasserman and LA28 organizers continue to ramp up planning the Games.
Wasserman has been clear about not stepping down from his role as LA28 chief and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics reached a symbolic milestone last week with the Games being just two years from its opening ceremony.
Internally, Wasserman has received a united front of support from LA28’s board along with CEO Reynold Hoover, who was pleased at the major progress being made by organizers.
But L.A. mayor Karen Bass was unmoved and called for Wasserman to step down during an interview with CNN in February.
A sale to Providence would make wholly owning The Team a more seamless move than dividing the agency’s sports or entertainment units into pieces coveted by some of the major power players in the industry. The Rhode Island-based equity firm has communally boosted its holdings in the talent agency in the past three years.
