Stephanie McMahon announced her retirement as co-CEO of WWE on Tuesday night, less than a week after her father, Vince McMahon, came out of retirement and returned as CEO.
Stephanie McMahon was also the public company’s president prior to her father’s return on Friday. She shared co-CEO duties with Nick Khan, who is now WWE’s sole CEO. Her husband, WWE Hall of Famer Paul “Triple H” Levesque, remains firmly in his place as host of weekly WWE TV stories, a position he rose to after Vince McMahon, who had overseen the creative side since 1982, held initially left the company in July.
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“With the leadership of Nick and Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque as Chief Content Officers, I am confident that WWE is in the perfect place to continue to deliver unprecedented creative content and drive maximum shareholder value.” Stephanie McMahon wrote in a statement posted to Twitter for his 3.2 million followers.
“WWE is in such a strong position that I’ve decided to take my leave of absence back and take it a step further with my official retirement, little girl, as a pure fan.”
Vince McMahon’s resignation in July followed allegations of sexual misconduct, which included payments for non-disclosure agreements. Although McMahon used personal funds for the payments, he did not record these expenses, which totaled $19.6 million.
In a statement announcing his return Thursday, Vince McMahon said the move was taken to “take full advantage of WWE’s upcoming media rights hearings.” The wrestling company’s network deals with USA and Fox for Monday Night Raw and Friday Night SmackDown, respectively, expire next year. These alternatives could result in the sale of the company before media rights negotiations. Vince McMahon returned to the company and also welcomed former WWE Co-Chairs Michelle Wilson and George Barrios to the board.
“I want to express my full support for Stephanie’s personal decision. I will forever be grateful that she offered to fill in during my absence and I am truly proud of the work she has done at the forefront of WWE,” said Vince McMahon, who bought the company. to her father in 1982. “Stephanie has always been the ultimate ambassador for our company, and her contributions over the decades have left an immeasurable impact on our brand.”