Photo Credit: Casey Wasserman by Joyce N. Boghosian, Official White House Photographer (Public Domain)

Casey Wasserman is in talks to sell his stake in the company to private equity firm Providence Equity Partners, which already owns a majority stake.

The Team, the talent agency formerly known as Wasserman, which renamed itself after its founder Casey Wasserman was forced to step down amid the Epstein files controversy, has been looking for a new owner ever since. But despite drawing interest from United Talent Agency and Patrick Whitesell’s WIN, among other potential suitors, it’s looking like ownership of The Team might not travel too far.

Casey Wasserman is reportedly in talks to sell his stake in the company to private equity firm Providence Equity Partners, which already has a majority stake as of November 2022. It’s a move that makes sense for The Team and would allow it to maintain strategic continuity.

The first round of bids for the firm was submitted in April to investment bank Moelis & Co., which handled the auction. Notably, the bank’s leader, Ken Moelis, sits on the LA28 Olympics Committee board, of which Wasserman is chairman. UTA was an early contender, but reportedly bowed out of the running early last month.

Providence has been pressuring Wasserman to sell since late January, when the mogul was named in a tranche of documents released by the Department of Justice in relation to convicted sex traffickers Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell. A deluge of artists headed for the doors, announcing they were dropping Wasserman, including Chappell Roan and Laufey.

Wasserman sent an email to employees in February, noting that he had “become a distraction” to the company’s endeavors and would be stepping down. The firm quickly rebranded as The Team to distance itself from its founder.

The Team remains one of the biggest players in the sports talent pool. The company’s sports division generated $266 million in revenue in 2024, 29% of its total revenue, and second only to CAA’s sports division, which generated $578 million that same year.

Besides sports, the firm also includes a sizable music agency group stemming from its 2021 acquisition of Paradigm’s music division, plus the production-management firm Brillstein. The company has acquired several creative firms and agencies since its founding in 2002, and earlier this year boasted 4,000 employees.