With Vince McMahon now back on WWE’s Board of Directors, all signs point to the pro wrestling promotion attempting a sale to a major media conglomerate in the near future. Potential candidates like Comcast, Netflix and Amazon have repeatedly been brought up by experts alongside Endeavor, the UFC’s parent company. The Hollywood Reporter‘s Alex Weprin dropped a new report analyzing the situation on Tuesday and discussed the various contenders to eventually own the WWE, while also bringing up the possibility that McMahon will attempt to remain in power regardless of who winds up making the purchase.
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Weprin stated it was unclear if McMahon’s presence and involvement could hinder any of the deals, but when the subject of Endeavor was brought up he did mention the man who stepped in to take control of WWE’s booking during McMahon’s “retirement” — Paul Levesque. According to one of his sources, Endeavor “would likely not pursue a deal unless it was assured that the WWE’s head of creative, Paul Levesque, …promised to stick around.
Wolfe Research analyst Peter Supino, who was interviewed for the piece, noted, “WWE’s management contracts include a double trigger clause for any sale requiring the C-suite to stay on for two years in a change of control.” Levesque currently holds the position of Chief Content Officer.
McMahon claimed in his press release last week that he has no intention of returning to any of his previous roles besides chairman, though many insiders have been skeptical over how long he’ll stick to that. As of now, he hasn’t been present at any of WWE’s television tapings or back at WWE Headquarters in Stamford, Connecticut.
“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’s statement read. “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.”
“WWE has an exceptional management team in place, and I do not intend for my return to have any impact on their roles, duties, or responsibilities,” he later added.
