Business News Deals Live Business

AEG Facilities and SMG to merge and create one mega venue operator

By Andy Malt | Published on Friday 8 February 2019

Two of the world’s largest entertainment venue operators – AEG Facilities and SMG – have announced plans to merge. The main AEG parent company and Onex – the private equity firm that acquired SMG in December 2017 – will each own 50% of the new combined entity, to be named ASM Global.

“This merger is a major step for our industry”, says SMG CEO Wes Westley. “We are excited to bring together these complementary businesses to further elevate the standard of excellence in venue management”.

He goes on: “We plan to accelerate innovation by combining our expertise to deliver increased value and offer enhanced capabilities to municipalities and venue owners worldwide. At the same time, we expect that this transaction will offer employees at both our corporate headquarters and field operations tremendous new opportunities”.

Set to be based in LA, the new company will oversee 310 venues across five continents, including London’s Wembley and O2 arenas, the Barclays Center in New York, and the Staples Center in LA.

Following the merger, current AEG Facilities President Bob Newman will become President and CEO of ASM Global. Westley, meanwhile, will join the board of directors of the new outfit.

“AEG Facilities has flourished under Bob’s leadership since it was established a decade ago and this combination will position ASM for growth by joining the resources and talents of these two companies”, says overall AEG CEO Dan Beckerman. “ASM will offer an impressive array of capabilities that will accelerate the development and deployment of new services and bring diverse business, sports and entertainment experiences to municipalities, partners and fans around the world”.

Pending regulatory approval, the two companies are aiming to complete their merger by the end of this year.