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By Greg Roumeliotis, Soyoung Kim and Nicola Leske
NEW YORK, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The buyout firms bidding fortalent agency IMG Worldwide Inc have all secured partnershipswith other companies in the sector after KKR & Co LP exited an auction seen fetching more than $2 billion, accordingto people familiar with the matter.
KKR withdrew last week, leaving Silver Lake in partnershipwith William Morris Endeavor Entertainment LLC, CVC CapitalPartners Ltd in partnership with Chernin Group LLC and CarlyleGroup LP in partnership with ICM Partners Inc as theprivate equity-backed groups in the race, the people said.
Private equity firms that own or partner with companies thathave synergies with the companies they want to acquire have anadvantage in auctions over buyout firms without a strategicangle.
KKR was pursuing IMG alone after another buyout firm, NewMountain Capital LLC, dropped discussions about a potentialjoint bid, the people said on Monday on condition of anonymitybecause details of the auction are confidential.
Final bids for IMG, whose clients include top tennis playerNovak Djokovic and supermodel Gisele Bundchen and which owns therights to numerous sports leagues, are expected by December, thepeople said.
It remains unclear if another party, not associated withprivate equity, is still involved in the process as a suitor.
Spokespeople for IMG, ICM and Silver Lake did notimmediately respond to a request for comment while William Morris, KKR, CVC, New Mountain and Chernin Group declined tocomment.
The sale of IMG is being driven by the trustee that runs theestate of Teddy Forstmann. His private equity firm, ForstmannLittle & Co, acquired IMG for $750 million in 2004.
Forstmann Little has held onto IMG for longer than a typicalinvestment period for private equity, and for years it hasrebuffed overtures from prospective buyers. Buyout interestincreased following Teddy Forstmann's departure in April 2011 asIMG chairman and CEO, and his death later that year.
Buyers that had approached Teddy Forstmann included formerYahoo CEO Terry Semel, who was willing to pay $1.5 billion in2008. Sources told Reuters at the time that Teddy Forstmannwanted at least twice the amount.
Last month, advertising agency WPP Plc CEO MartinSorrell described IMG as an asset he would love to own but saidhis company cannot afford it, as a frothy auction process pushedvaluation towards the $2.5 billion mark.
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld litigation partner MarkMacDougall and corporate practice co-chair J. Kenneth Menges,Jr., are managing the wind down of Teddy Forstmann's privateequity empire. Forstmann Little tried to sell 24 Hour Fitnesslast year but the process has since stalled.
Sports Business Daily first reported on Friday that KKR hadwithdrawn its bid for IMG.
