Vince McMahon officially returned to the WWE as a member of its Board of Directors last Friday. News of McMahon wanting to make a comeback to the company (under the belief that his legal issues and investigations from the SEC and federal prosecutors would “blow over”) broke last month via the Wall Street Journal. McMahon then approached the Board last month, demanding that he, Michelle Wilson and George Barrios be reinstated to the Board, that he be made executive chairman and that he oversee the next round of media rights negotiations and a potential sale of the company.ย
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WWE’s Board unanimously rejected Vince’s proposal originally, but McMahon responded by stating he would use his voting power via his Class B stocks to block and media rights deals or attempted sale if his demands were not met. His return was announced the following day. McMahon claimed in his press release that he had no intention of affecting WWE’s day-to-day operations or take over any other positions, but many insiders were immediately skeptical of that claim.ย
“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,” McMahon’s statement read.
“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.
However, there’s at least an initial sign that McMahon is sticking to his word on that front. Per Dave Meltzer, McMahon is not expected to return to the WWE Headquarters office in Stamford or to weekly television tapings.ย
“The word is he’s not. The word is he’s not even returning to his office. We’ll see how long that lasts,” Meltzer said. Between his voting power and his (presumed) position as chairman, there’s very little stopping him from taking over WWE’s booking again. Stay tuned for more updates.ย
