WWE CEO Vince McMahon steps down amid misconduct investigation

Vince McMahon on the June 17 edition of Smackdown

Vince McMahon, the CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), is stepping down from his role atop the company as it investigates allegations of misconduct. 

Last week, the Wall Street Journal reported that McMahon, 76, made a secret US$3 million settlement with a former employee with whom he allegedly had an affair in 2019, and that an internal investigation was underway. 

That investigation, the report adds, has uncovered previously hidden nondisclosure agreements from not only McMahon but from head of talent relations John Laurinaitis. The report could not state just how many NDAs were being looked at as part of the investigation, but notes that the payments totaled in the millions of dollars. 

The WWE board confirmed on Monday that it had engaged an external legal counsel to assist with an independent review, with the company’s compliance programme and HR function also being reviewed. 

While McMahon has stepped back from his executive duties, he will still retain creative control over weekly shows Raw and Smackdown – appearing on the latter last week to open the show amid the controversy.

The WWE reported record revenue of US$1.1 billion in 2021 – a year in which it agreed a reported US$1 billion deal to effectively sell its streaming platform WWE Network to NBCUniversal’s Peacock. The company recently agreed its first standalone international distribution deal with Disney+ Hotstar in Indonesia, with the company exploring further international rights deals.