Ushuaia Entertainment Not For Sale.
Online rumours earlier this week that Ushuaia, Hi and UNVRS had been sold to Pacha’s Five Group lit up what has been a boring club season to date in Ibiza. Unreliable sources on TikTok and Instagram published the clickbait headlines that forced Ushuaia Entertainment owners Abel Matutes Prats and Yann Pissenem to issue denials of the reports. It is the second time in the space of a year that Ushuaia Entertainment has had to defend attacks aimed at damaging its reputation.
One would have to worry about the level of cop-on and its effect on the quality of reporting in the modern Ibiza club scene. Still, you should never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups. It would take less than 30 seconds to fact-check that TNL and the Matutes Group, which owns UNVRS, Ushuaia, and Hi, are two separate companies with different owners, so it was gullible to suggest they could be sold in a buy-one-get-one-free deal. It’s clear the story was leaked to damage Ushuaia Entertainment, but this leak was a horse of a different colour from the one leaked in October 2025. Both dislike Ushuaia Entertainment and probably have scores to settle. Still, the latest rumour was more manipulative, clever, and strategic than its predecessor’s directiveness. While it may look silly, it could actually be revealing another story so unthinkable that it would be earth-shattering.
The story begins with Five Holdings’ purchase of Pacha for 302.5 million euros in October 2023. I am always suspicious when holding companies purchase assets, as they can also serve as a tool for hiding a business’s true ownership. Last season, rumours were circulating on the island that Five Holdings was moving in to buy Amnesia, whose owners, the Ferrer family, were coming under increasing pressure to sell up after the opening of UNVRS across the road. There is enough evidence in this season’s Amnesia programming to suggest an element of truth. The arrival of Glitterbox and Rememberland, along with the repatriation of Joseph Capriati after one season at Hi, certainly raised eyebrows. The presence of Anyma and Solomon in the Amnesia DJ box this summer was also “no normal”. In previous years, when DJs left Amnesia to sign with competitors, they were effectively barred from the club.
The Ibiza club scene was always tribal in its nature. If you left one tribe to join an enemy clan, you were disowned, and the door closed firmly as you left. However, in recent years, since the purchase of Pacha, DJs have moved with much more freedom between clubs than ever before. Solomun and Sven Vath have both appeared at UNVRS. Another Pacha resident, Camelphat, moved to Hi. The relationship between once-bitter rivals seems much friendlier these days. In the era of non-disclosure agreements, artists and staff have to remain tight-lipped about contracts and their paymasters. The NDA is an effective tool in the dance music industry for keeping people quiet and in line with the company, as it directly targets a DJ’s Achilles’ heel: their money.
Who Owns Pacha
So if we flip the rumour, mirror image it, you could come to the perplexing conclusion that Pacha, UNVRS, Ushuaia, Hi, and now Amnesia are related, as they all share the same parent owner. From a cryptic perspective, the rumour could contain a grain of truth, because the interesting question is: who really owns Pacha? Is there a mysterious, cigarette-smoking man hiding in the shadows like an X-Files character? But that cloak-and-dagger drama could never really happen in Ibiza, could it?
One thing is clear: the strength of the partnership between Yann Pissenem and Abel Matutes Prats. It’s the perfect business partnership. While there will always be pressure to meet targets and improve, Ushuaia Entertainment needs each partner’s talent to remain the dominant force in the industry. I see no early retirement or sale on the horizon for either man. There is a lot more to come.
The leak of this damaging rumour will not go unanswered. If there has to be a third denial by Ushuaia Entertainment, then the cock may crow, and the words come true. One thing that I have learned in Ibiza is that anything can happen there and everything is for sale. I don’t think we are going to hear the end of this story yet. As one well-respected source on the island commented, “the next few weeks might suddenly turn very interesting”.
Watch this space.
Related Articles
The New Jet Set. First Ever Nonstop New York To Ibiza on Next-Gen Airbus A321XLR.
The Newark to Ibiza flight marks the first-ever direct flight connection between America and Ibiza.
Ibiza 2026 Mid Season Report. The Compressed Summer.
Ibiza isn’t getting bigger. It’s getting more concentrated. The same energy, the same crowds, compressed into smaller windows: one flight, one night, one DJ.
Forest Fest Denies Rumoured Corporate Takeover Of Emo Festival.
Forest Fest has been the subject of speculation and rumours that an international live entertainment company is now associated with the event.