Majority owner Vince McMahon reportedly wants to return to World Wrestling Entertainment for one specific reason.
Lauren Thomas of the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that McMahon plans to return to WWE so he can help sell the company. The 77-year-old “retired” as WWE chairman and CEO this past July after the Wall Street Journal reported he made hush money payments to women who had alleged acts of sexual misconduct and infidelity.
As explained by Ian Carey of Wrestling Observer/Figure Four Online, McMahon intends to elect himself along with George Barrios and Michelle Wilson, two former company co-presidents, to the WWE board of directors. For that to occur, three current board members must vacate their positions.
“WWE is entering a critical juncture in its history with the upcoming media rights negotiations coinciding with increased industry-wide demand for quality content and live events and with more companies seeking to own the intellectual property on their platforms,” McMahon said in a statement shared by PR Newswire. “The only way for WWE to fully capitalize on this opportunity is for me to return as Executive Chairman and support the management team in the negotiations for our media rights and to combine that with a review of strategic alternatives. My return will allow WWE, as well as any transaction counterparties, to engage in these processes knowing they will have the support of the controlling shareholder.”
Thomas wrote that WWE is worth “just over $5 billion” on the market today.
Back in July, ESPN’s Marc Raimondi noted that Stephanie McMahon, Vince’s daughter, and WWE president Nick Khan took over as co-CEOs at that time. Stephanie was also named company chairwoman, and retired wrestler Paul “Triple H” Levesque was later made the head of the company’s creative direction.
Vince McMahon originally bought the company now known as WWE from his father in 1982 and turned it into the largest and most successful wrestling organization in history. He also portrayed the “Mr. McMahon” character for WWE on-air segments for over two decades until his supposed retirement.
