Ahead of a critical time in which the company is poised to cash in on the upcoming media rights negotiations coinciding with increased industry-wide demand for quality content and live events, Vince McMahon is returning to WWE.
McMahon, 77, officially announced his retirement back in the Summer of 2022, amid allegations of sexual misconduct that included non-disclosure agreement payments. Although McMahon paid the expenses, which totaled $19.6 million, with his personal funds, he failed to record the expenses.
Following his departure, Stephanie McMahon, and Nick Khan, a longtime agent at CAA, assumed the roles of co-CEO and Paul “Triple H” Levesque, replaced him as the person in charge of the creative direction of the company’s TV storylines.
While a McMahon return would lead many to believe he will be taking over everything as he did prior to his retirement, there is no word on any changes outside of McMahon’s return, which seems to be intently focused on the media rights negotiations.
McMahon, who remains the controlling shareholder of the company, plans to return to the company to “fully capitalize” on the deal.
It has bene rumored that WWE could be sold.
WWE’s rights deals with Fox and USA expire next year; negotiations are expected to begin later in 2023. Additionally, WWE posted its first billion-dollar revenue year in 2022.
“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 an official announcement.
“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.”