WWE sold

World Wrestling Entertainment is reportedly being sold to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund by Vince McMahon.

As a result of that report, McMahon stepped back from his role as chief executive officer of WWE while the board continued its investigation. “WWE is entering a critical juncture in its history with the upcoming media rights negotiations coinciding with increased industry-wide demand for quality content and live events and with more companies seeking to own the intellectual property on their platforms,” said McMahon last week. McMahon, who owns controlling shares of the company, is said to have sold the company to Saudi Arabia in a move that will take the company off the public stock market and back to being a private business per DAZN pro wrestling reporter Steven Muehlhausen.

Vince McMahon, just back from exile, may have already pawned off his empire to a brutal government looking to sportswash its evils.

Whether the product is that much better is in the eye of the beholder). It’s also hard to fathom, if this is true, that Vince would ever come armed with a deal that didn’t reinstall him as the overlord of the TV product. Same goes for the women’s roster, some of whom have performed on Saudi shows in the past, but full-blown Saudi ownership is a different kettle of fish. Given the speed of all this news, if it does turns out to be a sale to Saudi Arabia, it’s hard to believe that Vince didn’t have this in his pocket before he ever sent that letter to the WWE board informing them that he was breaking down the door. [LIV Golf](https://deadspin.com/another-day-another-unhinged-liv-press-conference-1849125459), the Saudi-owned upstart meant to upend the PGA Tour, [couldn’t find a US outlet](https://deadspin.com/liv-golf-may-have-found-err-paid-for-a-broadcast-part-1849593528) because no network wanted to be associated with the Saudi PIF. And, if all this happens, Vince has ripped his company away from his daughter (and probably his son-in-law) to sell it to a murderous and oppressive regime. McMahon, as the majority shareholder, reportedly [threatened to roadblock](https://deadspin.com/vince-mcmahon-is-back-at-wwe-pro-wrestling-1849957815) any sale or new TV deal unless he was reinstated to the board. (Both of the company’s TV deals — SmackDown on Fox and Raw on NBC’s USA Network — are up in just over a year and a half and negotiations will start much sooner than that.) As we said, a lot of dots to connect. McMahon, who returned from a leave of absence last year and rode in to the rescue for WWE, jumping in as co-CEO after her father had been pushed to retire, has definitely quit the company entirely. Earlier this week, when McMahon abruptly returned (in a hostile fashion, many would say) to engineer a sale of the company, Combine that with [WWE running shows in Saudi Arabia](https://deadspin.com/what-is-wwe-doing-in-saudi-arabia-1825506325) — despite all the flashing, blaring reasons to not do so — made the connection relatively easy for anyone who wanted to connect the dots. Rumors of a sale of the company have been louder, though, since

The report of the sale comes just hours after CEO Stephanie McMahon, Vince's daughter, announced her resignation from the company. She had stepped in following ...

In 2021, the PIF became the majority owner of [English](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/tag/england) soccer club Newcastle United. [reportedly controls](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-10-26/saudi-wealth-fund-plans-to-invest-24-billion-in-regional-states?sref=fypBllPq) about $620 billion in assets, and the kingdom has been stretching its reach into the world of sports in recent years. [pointed out](https://twitter.com/AngelaDawn623/status/1613021394710982656) on Twitter that severe punishment is possible in Saudi Arabia for being a part of the LGBT community, a group with which many WWE wrestlers identify. [WWE CEO STEPHANIE MCMAHON ANNOUNCES RESIGNATION AMID FATHER'S RETURN](https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/wwe-ceo-stephanie-mcmahon-resignation) Her husband, Paul "Triple H" Levesque, is the chief content officer. She had stepped in following her father's departure as CEO earlier this year amid a

Vince McMahon recently returned to reportedly attempt to sell the company.

[reported late Tuesday night ](https://twitter.com/SMuehlhausenJr/status/1613014122517655552?s=20&t=iPZ6DIJzG0Sqy7mA7aTtZQ)that the WWE has been sold to the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. In his absence, his daughter Stephanie McMahon had served as the co-CEO of the company with Nick Khan while his son-in-law Paul Levesque (Triple H) had taken control of the creative direction of the company. That now appears to be the case according to Muehlhausen. update — An anonymous executive at WWE has told Jon Alba that the reports of a sale or agreement to sell are “completely false” at this moment. Additionally, one of the original tweets saying the deal was done have deleted that tweet. The use of “at this moment” leaves room for plenty of maneuvering.

World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc (NYSE: WWE) has reportedly been sold to Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund.

](https://benzinga.grsm.io/register174) [reported](https://www.wrestlinginc.com/1163294/wwe-reportedly-sold-to-saudi-arabias-public-investment-fund/) Wrestling Inc. Why It Matters: McMahon is the controlling shareholder of WWE. DAZN Wrestling's head of social media Steven Muehlhausen was cited by Fox News. [reported](https://foxsports1070.iheart.com/content/2023-01-10-report-wwe-has-been-sold-to-saudi-arabias-public-investment-fund/) Fox News. [Saudi Arabia](https://www.benzinga.com/topic/saudi-arabia) Public Investment Fund.

Her decision comes mere days after her father Vince McMahon was reinstated to the WWE Board of Directors, and immediately after her announcement, the company ...

Her decision comes mere days after her father Vince McMahon was reinstated to the WWE Board of Directors, and immediately after her announcement, the company issued a press release stating that Vince had been [unanimously elected](https://tjrwrestling.net/news/vince-mcmahon-wwe-executive-chairman/) Executive Chairman of the Board. The PIF is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia which helped fund the takeover of Newcastle United Football Club in England as well as start the controversial LIV Golf organisation. Regardless of the alleged sale, it is also noted in the report that there is an “incredible amount of concern” in the company due to the resurgence of Vince McMahon in the company.

World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. (WWE) has been sold to the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, according to a tweet by DAZN journalist Steve Muehlhausen ...

Year-to-date, it has already [ climbed by 31.6%](https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/wwe/stock-analysis). [WWE’s stock](https://www.tipranks.com/stocks/wwe/forecast) price has risen more than 7% in pre-market trading. Muehlhausen tweeted late last night that the WWE had been sold and would return to being a private company.

In the rvialry between WWE and UFC, Vince McMahon is poised to come out on top as expectations of a sale rise with his return to the company.

Media analysts at LightShed suggested in a 2023 outlook that Amazon may be very interested in adding WWE events to its slate of live programming. Plus, in the stock market, acquisitions tend to come at a 28% premium to a company’s stock price. Whoever the buyer, at the average price premium, Vince McMahon would find his 28.7 million shares worth $3.2 billion, putting his total wealth close to $4 billion, based on data from Forbes. That means any purchase of WWE is going to be result in lots of cash flowing to shareholders’ wallets. Founded in 1993 and not even half the age of WWE, UFC is now about even on two major metrics: social media followers (WWE 60.4 million; UFC 59.5 million) and revenue (for 2021: WWE $974 million; UFC roughly $1 billion*). The reason ties back to a common theme in sports and entertainment these days: WWE’s control of its media rights and intellectual property. [off the mark](https://www.sportico.com/personalities/executives/2023/vince-mcmahon-jumps-back-into-ring-1234700409/). Assuming the same for WWE, a 28% premium would put shares at $113. Endeavor’s heavy debt load—already a weight on the stock—is one reason the chatter that Endeavor wants to buy WWE probably won’t amount to anything. Enterprise value, which is the market cap plus debt, minus cash on hand, is probably a better reflection of a business’ true worth. And in recent years, UFC has seemed to run neck-and-neck with WWE for the title of the world’s favorite ringed event (sorry, Barnum and boxing). McMahon can offer all this in what may well be the golden age of media rights, with bidding sure to be influenced by the needs of traditional broadcasters eager to clutch whatever viewers they can as well as streaming behemoths looking to establish themselves with consumers.

WWE has not been sold to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund ... this according to sources familiar with the situation.

with the intent to help with TV deal negotiations and explore a potential sale of the company. A sale to Saudi Arabia would certainly cause backlash with WWE fans ... WWE Company Not Sold to Saudi Arabia ... WWE has not been sold to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund ... WWE Sources Say Company Not Sold to Saudi Arabia [Vince McMahon](https://www.tmz.com/people/vince-mcmahon/) secured a massive payday for handing over the company reins to Saudi Arabia, which would take the WWE private once again.

In a since-deleted tweet, Steven Muehlhausen of DAZN reported Tuesday that WWE had been sold to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and that it would revert ...

[Cassidy Haynes](https://twitter.com/Casshooole/status/1613045348930289671) of BodySlam.net later reported that while WWE and Saudi Arabia have agreed to a deal in principle, it hasn't been finalized. Listen to Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot wrestling topics. [Lauren Thomas](https://www.wsj.com/articles/vince-mcmahon-plots-return-to-wwe-11672952709) of the Wall Street Journal reported that McMahon was planning a WWE comeback in order to play a role in the potential sale of the company. [Alex Sherman](https://www.cnbc.com/2023/01/07/who-would-buy-wwe-as-mcmahon-returns-to-board-to-pursue-sale.html) furthered rumors of a potential sale last week when he reported that WWE hired investment banking company JPMorgan to advise it in sale discussions. [Brandon Thurston](https://twitter.com/BrandonThurston/status/1613176189610299396) of Wrestlenomics disputed reports of a sale, noting that someone in WWE "who would know" told him the Saudi Arabia rumors are untrue. [since-deleted tweet](https://wrestletalk.com/news/update-wwe-saudi-arabia-sale-agreed-in-principle/), Steven Muehlhausen of DAZN reported Tuesday that WWE had been sold to Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and that it would revert to being a private company rather than a publicly traded one.