Louisville-based Ohio Valley Wrestling, co-owned by Mayor Craig Greenberg, has been sold to a company in the United Kingdom.
Morley Sports Management Limited will acquire a majority shareholding in the company by May 1. MSM also owns Haverfordwest County, a professional soccer club based in Wales. In a social media announcement on the OVW acquisition, MSM touted the soccer club's success since its takeover in 2020, vouching for its expertise in sports companies.
MSM founder Rob Edwards will soon become OVW's chief operating officer.
"OVW is such a historic brand within wrestling and sports entertainment, and has real provenance," Edwards said in a statement. "Some of the biggest talents in the industry have learned their trade at OVW, confirmed by the fact that the main event at Wrestlemania this year will be between two OVW alumni in John Cena and Cody Rhodes."
OVW was also featured on the Netflix series "Wrestlers" in 2023, garnering national attention for the business. Since its founding in 1993 by Danny Davis, OVW has trained famous wrestlers including Cena, Batista, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar and Rhodes.
Greenberg and Matt Jones, an OVW minority owner and Kentucky Sports Radio host, bought the company in 2021.
"I fully believe that MSM is the perfect management entity to help OVW continue to grow and expand the boundaries of its support into new and exciting markets," a statement from Jones read. "I look forward to providing support as they lead the future of this historic wrestling organization to exciting new heights."
Greenberg said Tuesday that he has not been active in the business since becoming mayor, but he is "pleased" with the selection of MSM as the new owner, pointing toward its success in the soccer industry.
"I will still have a small minority ownership interest in it, but I will not be involved in any day-to-day activity of the business," Greenberg said. "It's great news for the company for the future of OVW."
Reach reporter Eleanor McCrary at [email protected] or at @ellie_mccrary on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: UK-based company to acquire Louisville's Ohio Valley Wrestling
English (US) ·