Vince McMahon is officially back. Reports surfaced that the longtime WWE Chairman was intending to return to the company late last year, as he believed he received bad advice regarding his retirement this past summer. The Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday that a McMahon comeback was imminent, as he planned to return to WWE to assist with a potential sale of the company. The report added that McMahon would not approve or support any sale of WWE’s media rights unless he had executive power in the decision.
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“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 wrote. “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.”
All of that came to fruition on Friday morning, as McMahon and former WWE co-presidents Michelle Wilson and George Barrios were reappointed to the WWE Board of Directors.
Following the announcement, WWE Chairwoman and co-CEO Stephanie McMahon, co-CEO Nick Khan, and Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque put out a joint statement addressing Vince’s comeback.
“Today, we announce that the founder of WWE, Vince McMahon, will be returning to the Board,” Stephanie, Khan, and Levesque’s statement read. “We also welcome back Michelle Wilson and George Barrios to our Board of Directors. Together, we look forward to exploring all strategic alternatives to maximize shareholder value.”
Vince has emphasized that his return is strictly business, as he does not intend to interfere with WWE’s current management team.
“WWE has an exceptional management team in place,” Vince wrote yesterday. “And I do not intend for my return to have any impact on their roles, duties, or responsibilities.”
As of this writing, WWE’s Board of Directors consists of the following names…
- Vince McMahon
- Stephanie McMahon
- Nick Khan
- Paul Levesque
- Steve Koonin
- Michelle McKenna
- Steve Pamon
- George Barrios
- Michelle Wilson
Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for updates on Vince’s WWE return.
