Starting from today morning Vince McMahon won’t no longer be in place of solely running things on WWE Raw or Smackdown. Following Wrestlemania 39 in April, WWE shares were sold to UFC parent company Endeavor and the deal becomes effective from this week onward which no more keeps Vince in the position of biggest company possessor in professional wrestling.
From that perspective, the September 11 episode of WWE Raw was historic since it officially marked the end of the Vince McMahon era in sports entertainment which lasted for more than four decades. Vince has been the majority owner of WWE since he purchased the WWWF from his Dad in 1982.
From just being a US-based wrestling company, he worked hard to make it a global wrestling empire which solidified Vince’s legacy. Shows like WWE Raw and Smackdown also arrived on the scene in the ’90s and in the early 2000s to spread WWE programming throughout the world. With Vince in charge and stars like The Undertaker, The Rock, Stone Cold, John Cena, Triple H and more performing under him, WWE became one of the most famous sporting events in the world.
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WWE Raw/Smackdown will now be under a company banner named TKO
To date, Vince McMahon used to be the sole owner of the WWE. But from today, WWE will merge with the UFC under the Endeavor banner. The WWE was sold to the media juggernaut for a whopping amount of $9 billion in April. Now, WWE and UFC have become TKO, a new live entertainment company that will trade on the New York Stock Exchange.
While Vince McMahon will still be involved in the new business and will serve as TKO’s Executive Chairman, his sole ownership in a pro wrestling company has already come to an end. He will therefore no longer have the last say on WWE Raw/Smackdown programming unless the newly formed board agrees. With that, the McMahon-era has officially come to an end in the WWE.
Vince was briefly gone from the WWE, last summer but earlier this year, he barged into the board of directors and took back control just to sell the company. Sean Sapp noted behind Fightful’s paywall that Nia Jax was one of the first signings that he made after his return and incidentally Jax also returned during last night’s episode of WWE Raw.
