Scoop: Former CNN boss Jeff Zucker to buy Front Office Sports
Former CNN boss Jeff Zucker has agreed to acquire newsletter startup Front Office Sports, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: This is Zucker’s first acquisition since launching RedBird IMI, a $1 billion investment fund focused on media, entertainment and sports.
- Zucker now has a brand and platform that he can use to develop and license new documentaries and video projects, with a source saying FOS will seek to hire new on-camera talent.
- RedBird IMI is a joint venture between U.S. private equity firm RedBird Capital Partners and UAE-based International Media Investments (IMI), with Zucker at the helm.
Details: The deal, which remains unannounced, marks a new chapter for FOS, which CEO Adam White launched while in college in 2014.
- In 2022 it raised $5 million from Crain Communications at around a $25 million valuation.
- Most FOS products are free, but it did begin selling paid subscriptions in 2021.
The big picture: RedBird IMI last month said it would launch a new non-fiction content studio led by former Time president Ian Orefice.
- A source tells Axios that FOS will fall under the studio’s umbrella.
- Axios previously reported on the deal talks.