Heavy metal group Iron Maiden has sold 50% of its publishing and master music rights, along with name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights, to Swedish company Pophouse Entertainment.
The announcement by the investment firm, which was co-founded by ABBA’s Bjorn Ulvaeus, was made on Tuesday, Variety reported.
Full details of the deal were not disclosed, according to the entertainment news outlet. However, the deal includes rights to “Eddie,” the band’s ghoulish mascot.
Iron Maiden Sells Half of Their Catalog, Name And Likeness Rights to Pophouse Entertainmenthttps://t.co/cF7qz2bls1
— billboard (@billboard) July 14, 2026
The announcement was first reported by Billboard. The music outlet reported that Pophouse structured the deal over the past year with Andy Taylor, the band’s co-manager.
BMG, which has worked with Iron Maiden in the United States since it acquired Sanctuary Records in 2013, retains its ownership stake in the band’s catalog, Billboard reported.
The band, formed in 1975 by founder and bassist Steve Harris, has sold more than 100 million records and has produced 17 albums, according to Billboard. The group has been nominated for four Grammy Awards and won in 2011 in the Best Metal Performance category for “El Dorado,” beating out Korn, Slayer, Megadeth and Lamb of God.
“We are 50-50 partners with the band, and the plan is that we’re going to work together turbocharging Maiden’s plans for the future,” Pophouse CEO Jessica Koravos told Billboard. “With Pophouse, we’re always thinking around the visual identity and … there’s lots of world building that’s possible both in (Iron Maiden’s) artwork, but also in the storytelling within the songs. The heavy metal genre, especially with the addition of Eddie, lends itself to a treatment potentially in the world of horror.”
Pophouse also owns the music rights of Kiss, Cyndi Lauper and Tina Turner, according to Billboard.
Koravos said Pophouse is collaborating with Iron Maiden on a film of its Run For Your Lives World Tour and other plans around interactive fan experiences and a digital universe centered around Eddie.
“I am very excited about our relationship with Pophouse and the ability we now have to pursue, facilitate, and finance our many plans and dreams quicker than we ever hoped,” Iron Maiden’s manager, Rod Smallwood, said in a statement. “The interest in the band has never been bigger and (with) this strategic partnership … the fans can be assured there is a great deal more to come for Maiden, and Eddie will rule, OK!!”
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