Why Liberty Media Spun Off Assets, Shook Up Leadership

Arguably the only constant is change for one of the most prominent companies across the business of sports, as Liberty Media is undergoing another major corporate shift.

The parent of Formula One and MotoGP said Thursday that president and CEO Greg Maffei will step down at the end of 2024 after nearly two decades in that position and shift into an advisory role. John Malone, Liberty’s 83-year-old chairman, will be the interim CEO.

The company, meanwhile, is also spinning off most of its assets outside of F1 into a separate entity called Liberty Live, and Charter Communications is acquiring Liberty Broadband in an all-stock transaction. Those moves are aimed at “simplifying Liberty Media’s capital structure,” the company said.

Maffei has been a key driver in Liberty’s growth over the years, and most specifically, helped lead the company’s 2017 acquisition of F1, a deal that has since seen the motorsports property massively expand its global presence—particularly in the U.S.  

“All the Liberty acquisitions completed during my tenure are now in structures where shareholders can have more direct ownership in their upside. The corporate structure is optimized,” Maffei said. “While it’s never easy to leave an organization as dynamic as Liberty, I am confident that this is the right time.”

The latest changes arrive about 16 months after MLB’s Braves split from Liberty into a separate, publicly traded company, involving a franchise that remains one of the league’s top performers on and off the field. 

More news on Liberty’s future direction is expected Thursday as the company is scheduled to hold an investor meeting in New York. That session will include both Malone and Maffei.