The era of the old WWE comes to a close as CEO Vince McMahon announced on Friday that he would be fully retiring from his role at the company after an investigation of sexual misconduct was opened up against him.
McMahon led the company for decades, surviving his father who founded the company to begin with. However, after the Wall Street Journal made a report stating that McMahon had paid over $12 million to four different women as hush money over 16 years, issues began to form.
McMahon is known as one of, if not the, largest professional-wrestling tycoons in the United States, following in the footsteps of his grandfather Jess McMahon. The grandfather had been leading the promoters of scripted wrestling events for decades across the northeast, and that would eventually lead to Vince McMahon Sr. founding WWE.
McMahon would take the WWE in 1982 and change it from a regional promoter of scripted wrestling events into a multi-billion-dollar industry, which helped many young stars like Dwayne Johnson rise to fame.
However, a WSJ report published back in June alleged that he had paid over $3 million to a paralegal working at WWE to stay silent about his affair with her. Quickly following the report McMahon would step back from his role, his daughter taking the place of interim CEO, while the board sought out the issue.
However, unlike the original agreement made following the probe, McMahon will be relinquishing any role involving the company’s creative content while his daughter and company President Nick Khan take charge as co-CEOs.
“As I approach 77 years old, I feel it’s time for me to retire as Chairman and CEO of WWE,” McMahon stated during a statement.
“I would like to thank my family for mightily contributing to our success, and I would also like to thank all of our past and present Superstars and employees for their dedication and passion for our brand. Most importantly, I would like to thank our fans for allowing us into your homes every week and being your choice of entertainment.”
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