NJPW Announces New Ownership

A major business shift is coming to New Japan Pro Wrestling.

Bushiroad Inc., which has owned NJPW since 2012, announced on Wednesday that it is transferring all of its shares in the promotion to TV Asahi and CyberAgent. The move marks the end of Bushiroad’s 14-year run as the parent company of one of the biggest wrestling promotions in the world.

Under the new structure, NJPW will become a consolidated subsidiary of TV Asahi, with CyberAgent also taking a significant ownership stake.

According to the announcement, Bushiroad believes the change will help strengthen NJPW’s future in digital distribution and video content expansion. The company pointed to the growing importance of streaming platforms and diversified media strategies in modern professional wrestling as key reasons behind the decision.

TV Asahi has a deep history with New Japan, serving as the promotion’s broadcast partner since 1973. Meanwhile, CyberAgent brings extensive digital media experience to the table and already has ties to the wrestling industry through ownership of promotions including Pro Wrestling NOAH and DDT Pro Wrestling.

Bushiroad stated that it feels it has accomplished its role in helping increase NJPW’s corporate value and sees the new ownership setup as the best path forward for the promotion’s continued growth.

Financial details of the deal were also revealed. Bushiroad sold all 10,500,400 of its NJPW shares for a total of 3.597 billion yen. Of those shares, TV Asahi is expected to acquire 3,550,200 shares for roughly 1.216 billion yen, while CyberAgent will purchase 6,950,200 shares for approximately 2.380 billion yen.

The transaction is expected to officially close on June 30.

Despite NJPW no longer being part of Bushiroad’s consolidated business structure, the company expects to record an extraordinary financial gain of approximately 1.616 billion yen, which converts to around $10.1 million USD.

The announcement immediately sparked discussion among wrestling fans about what the future could look like for NJPW under the combined influence of a major television partner and a digital-focused media company. With streaming and global distribution becoming increasingly important in wrestling, the ownership change could signal a stronger push toward expanding NJPW’s reach both inside and outside Japan.