Despite resigning from his position, Vince McMahon still has significant control within the company he once owned.
Disturbing allegations about Vince McMahon became public knowledge on January 25th, which saw the disgraced chairman accused of sex trafficking and multiple counts of sexual assault by former WWE employee Janel Grant. McMahon, who was Executive Chairman of WWE and a member of the TKO Board of Directors when the allegations came out, resigned from both positions.
Despite no longer being a part of the company, McMahon is still in ownership of a large amount of stock, meaning that he would be able to significantly influence a number of key business decisions in the future.
On February 27th, TKO held their Q4 earnings call and took questions from shareholders. One question asked was if the company would consider purchasing a large amount of stock from a shareholder. TKO President Mark Shapiro answered the question, stating that the individual in question is McMahon and no discussions have taken place in regard to his 20 million shares:
“Obviously, we’re talking about Vince McMahon, specifically, in terms of cashing stock. He still holds, I believe, 20 million shares. It’s all registered. He’ll do whatever he is going to do and we’re on the sidelines, we’ll have a look, we’ll see, we have no idea on timing. We’re not having a discussion with him. He’s given us no point of view on his motive or if he plans to sell or not sell or if he does, how much. We’re going to wait around and find out, just like you,”
Additionally, McMahon’s power is outlined in TKO’s Annual Report:
Vincent K. McMahon, who served as Executive Chair of the Company’s Board of Directors until January 26, 2024, controls a significant portion of the voting power of the issued and outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock.
Vince McMahon Remains A Major Talking Point In Media Interviews
With the McMahon allegation extending far beyond the former Chairman and highlighting a toxic culture within the company, many top stars have been asked about the allegations in general and how they relate to their personal experiences in the promotion. Becky Lynch described the allegations as horrible and discussed her own personal WWE experiences, while Kevin Owens described the accusations as shameful and can never happen again.
H/t to Fightful.