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IMG (company) facts for kids

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International Management Group
Subsidiary
Founded 1960
Founder Mark McCormack
Headquarters
New York City, New York
,
United States
Area served
 25+ countries
Key people
 Ari Emanuel
(co-CEO)
Patrick Whitesell
(co-CEO)
Number of employees
 3,000+
Parent Endeavor
Divisions Art + Commerce
College
Events
Fashion
Media - Including Rights, Production & IMG ARENA
Models
Licensing

IMG, which stands for International Management Group, is a big company based in New York City. It works with sports, fashion, live events, and media all around the world. IMG helps athletes and famous fashion people manage their careers. They also own and run many live events. Plus, they create and share sports and entertainment shows. Since 2013, IMG has been owned by a company called Endeavor.

How IMG Started and Grew

IMG was started in 1960 in Cleveland, Ohio. A lawyer named Mark McCormack created it. He saw that athletes could earn a lot of money from advertising deals, especially with TV becoming popular.

His first clients were famous golfers: Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, and Jack Nicklaus. These three were known as "The Big Three." Mark McCormack passed away in 2003.

In 2004, a company called Forstmann Little bought IMG. Its leader, Theodore J. Forstmann, became the head of IMG until he died in 2011.

Over the years, IMG bought other companies. In 2006, IMG Media bought Tiger Aspect Productions, which made the TV show Mr. Bean. They also bought Darlow Smithson Productions. These companies were later sold to Endemol in 2009.

Also in 2006, IMG Media bought nunet AG. This company provided mobile TV services to phone companies worldwide. Some of their clients included Vodafone and Mobilkom A1. They distributed content like MTV and Eurosport.

In 2007, IMG bought Host Communications. This company handled sports marketing and broadcasting. Its sports parts joined with the Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC) to create IMG College.

IMG's main office was in Cleveland, Ohio, for many years. In 1997, they moved into a renovated building called IMG Center. In 2010, the main office officially moved to New York City to be with its parent company. However, the IMG Center is still in Cleveland.

In 2010, IMG also bought ISP. This company managed media rights for over 50 universities. ISP's old office in Winston-Salem became part of IMG College.

On December 18, 2013, IMG was bought by William Morris Endeavor and Silver Lake Partners. This big deal created a new company called WME-IMG. WME's leaders, Ari Emanuel and Patrick Whitesell, became the co-CEOs.

In 2017, WME-IMG changed its name to Endeavor. IMG and WME then became parts of Endeavor. Ari Emanuel became Endeavor's CEO, and Patrick Whitesell became its executive chairman.

IMG's Media Work

IMG's Media Division helps sports groups and events share their content. They work with big TV channels and online platforms around the world. Each year, they deliver thousands of hours of content from over 200 clients.

They produce many sports broadcasts. This includes Channel 4's coverage of England's men's football matches and Super League rugby. They also work on CBS's UEFA Champions League coverage and the Premier League's international broadcasts.

IMG also creates and shares two special sports channels. Sport 24 is a live sports channel for airlines and cruise ships. EDGEsport is a channel for action sports.

In 2012, IMG started IMG ARENA. This company focuses on sports data and technology for betting, media, and professional sports.

In 2021, Endeavor bought Mailman Group. Its digital marketing agency, Seven League, became part of IMG's Media division.

Trans World Sport was one of the first shows made by IMG. It started in 1987. This sports magazine show is 49 minutes long and is shown in many countries. IMG owns and distributes it.

IMG's Huge Sports Archive

IMG has a very large collection of sports videos and content. It's called IMG's Archive Services (or IMG Replay). They have over 500,000 hours of content. Some of it goes back more than 120 years!

This archive includes footage from events, highlights, interviews, and full programs. It's available in high quality.

IMG works with many sports organizations to help them organize, sell, and market their old content. Some of these include:

IMG also helps brands and production studios get the rights to use content from their archives.

IMG Models

IMG Models is a top international modeling agency. Its main office is in New York City. It also has offices in London, Los Angeles, Milan, Paris, and Sydney. It is part of IMG.

In 2013, IMG Models joined with William Morris Endeavor. By 2015, this agency represented more than half of the world's highest-paid supermodels.

IMG's Consulting Services

IMG's Consulting team works with sports organizations and brands. They help with business, marketing, and sponsorship plans. IMG also has a group that works with sports leagues and teams on stadiums and arenas.

In Brazil, IMG worked with a local partner called IMM. They helped clients involved with the FIFA 2014 World Cup and the Rio 2016 Summer Olympics.

Working Together: Joint Ventures

IMG often partners with other companies in different parts of its business. These partnerships are called joint ventures.

For example, in Brazil, China, India, and Turkey, IMG has partners. These partners help develop sports, fashion, and entertainment projects in those countries.

In 2015, IMG and Euroleague Basketball started a ten-year partnership. Together, they manage the business side and global rights for the EuroLeague. This is the top competition for men's professional basketball clubs in Europe. They also manage the EuroCup, which is the second-tier competition.

Exciting Events by IMG

IMG owns, produces, and helps sell many events around the world.

Art Events

Football (Soccer) Events

Basketball Events

Entertainment Events

  • Miss Teen USA (until 2022)
  • Miss USA (until 2022)
  • Miss Universe (until 2022)
  • Taste Festivals (food festivals)
  • Hyde Park Winter Wonderland (a Christmas event in London)
  • GLIDE at Battersea Power Station (ice skating)
  • Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show
  • The Big Feastival (music and food festival)

Figure Skating Events

  • Stars on Ice

Golf Events

  • Australian Open (golf)
  • Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship
  • DP World Tour
  • The Open Championship
  • Senior Open Championship
  • Women's British Open
  • Arnold Palmer Invitational
  • The Masters
  • Ryder Cup (a team golf competition)
  • Honda LPGA Thailand
  • HSBC Women's Champions

Motorsports Events

  • Formula Drift
  • MotoGP (motorcycle racing)

Rugby League Events

Running Events

  • Melbourne Marathon
  • Great Ocean Road Marathon

Strongman Events

  • World's Strongest Man (a strength competition)

Surfing Events

  • U.S. Open of Surfing

Tennis Events

Triathlon Events

  • Escape from Alcatraz

Volleyball Events

  • FIVB Volleyball Men's Nations League
  • FIVB Volleyball Women's Nations League

IMG College: Supporting University Sports

In late 2007, IMG created IMG College by bringing together Host Communications and the Collegiate Licensing Company. In 2010, they also added ISP Sports.

Today, IMG College works with over 90 universities, sports conferences, and venues. They manage the media rights for these groups. They also handle the licensing rights for over 150 colleges and universities, including the College Football Playoff.

Additionally, IMG Seating helps over 100 universities with their seating needs. IMG Learfield Ticket Solutions provides ticketing services for universities.

Fashion Events

IMG is also a big name in the fashion world. They organize major fashion events like:

  • Australian Fashion Week
  • Berlin Fashion Week
  • New York Fashion Week

Licensing and Trademarks

IMG's Licensing Division helps companies with trademark licensing. They work with over 100 owners of intellectual property. This means they help manage and protect brand names and logos.

IMG in eSports

IMG eSports works with video game publishers and tournament organizers. They help manage the business rights for competitive video gaming events.

Some of the eSports events they work with include:

  • PGL
  • EVO (a major fighting game tournament)
  • EVO Japan
  • Global Esports Federation
  • Global Esports Games

In April 2022, the Global Esports Federation (GEF) announced IMG as a key partner. This partnership led to the creation of the Commonwealth Esports Championship.

IMG Tennis: Managing Top Players

IMG represents many tennis players from around the world. They help these athletes manage their careers.

Some of the famous tennis players IMG represents or has represented include:

IMG's Own Channels

Sport 24

Sport 24 is a live sports TV channel owned by IMG. It broadcasts sports 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can watch it on international airlines like Emirates and Singapore Airlines. It's also available on cruise lines like Carnival and Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines when they are in international waters.

The channel shows live sports from over 40 international sports groups and competitions. This includes the Premier League (football), National Football League (American football), National Basketball Association (basketball), UEFA Champions League (football), ATP World Tour (tennis), and the Olympics.

Sport 24 started in February 2012. In 2016, a second channel, Sport 24 Extra, was launched. It offers an extra 150 hours of live sports each month. This gives viewers more choices when multiple events are happening at the same time. Both channels are produced from IMG's offices near London's Heathrow Airport.

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