Were the WWE Board of Directors against Vince McMahon returning due to investor relations?
Vince McMahon’s investor relations were a huge hurdle in his route to the WWE Board of Directors. Although he held the majority of power due to his shareholding, his disgraceful dealings with women in the past marred his influence.
For those unknown, the former CEO resigned from his position in July 2022 as news of his ‘hush money’ scandal gave a bad reputation to the WWE. Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan became co-CEOs while Triple H ran the creative as Chief Content Officer. Stephanie is also the Chairwoman of WWE.
Mr. McMahon’s press release stated that “unless he has direct involvement as executive chairman from the outset of a strategic review, he won’t approve any media-rights deal or sale.” It was a clever decision on his part as WWE’s deals with USA Network and Fox are approaching an end. RAW and SmackDown broadcasting rights are about to be renegotiated this year.
The 77-year-old sent two letters to the Board of Directors stressing his return under the title of Executive Chairman in December. While he has made it to the BoD by replacing three members with his own stooges, the WWE Board of Directors were initially against the idea. Vince McMahon’s investor relations weren’t promising due to his recent legal troubles.
WWE’s reply to McMahon implied its interest in working with the wrestling promoter and executing a review process. The BoD wasn’t fully committed to the idea of his comeback until the investigation of his misconduct subsided. It demanded the repayment of expenses incurred by WWE during Vince's investigation, to which he agreed, but later McMahon turned deaf on the return advice.
Despite Vince McMahon’s investor relations, the Board had to yield to his ‘request’ since he owns a large number of Class-B stocks and could influence the market drastically. WWE’s Board of Directors currently consists of nine members: Vince McMahon, Stephanie McMahon, Nick Khan, Paul Levesque (Triple H), Steve Koonin, Michelle McKenna, Steve Pamon, George Barrios, and Michelle Wilson.
The WWE roster is in a state of worry due to Vince McMahon’s return
Many superstars have sour relations with the former CEO. McMahon’s creative thinking led to the departures of major talents such as Bray Wyatt and Cody Rhodes. Performers like Johnny Gargano and Braun Strowman were released during the pandemic era and they lost all hope of a return under Vince’s regime.
Fightful Select spoke to a few superstars and listened to their opinions. According to one of them, the news of Vince McMahon returning was scary but hopes are high that the current management undergoes no change.