Well…we’re here…
Vince McMahon finally retired about 7 hours ago on Twitter.
In the midst of a media frenzy over $12 million in payouts he made for inappropriate behavior with women, he stepped down.
A brief history of the WWE
The WWE was founded in 1953 as Capitol Wrestling Corporation (CWC) by Vince’s father and grandfather (reports vary). They so very ironically stood out from the rest of the regional promoters of the era by resisting the all-powerful National Wrestling Alliance (NWA) to form the World Wide Wrestling Federation (WWWF).
Of course, it was Vince who founded Titan Sports and created the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) in the 1980s. This was the Golden Era, where wrestlers like Hulk Hogan, Ricky “The Dragon” Steamboat, Tito Santana, and “Macho Man” Randy Savage were being broadcast on national television on a regular basis.
He created WrestleMania and increased the spectacle. Vince led the transition of the brand into the internet and gaming arenas as well. Through the 90s, he competed with other regional brands trying to reach national recognition, including Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW).
Check out the most unnecessarily violent wrestling matches in history.
By 2003, both wrestling leagues were owned and operated brands of the rebranded World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc (WWE).
Vince is the man who made professional wrestling what it is. He popularized it and defeated Ted Turner in the Monday Night Wars. He popularized it and created a juggernaut that has yet to lose to a competitor in any meaningful length of time.
Now, he stepped down, leaving the company to his idiot daughter and his doofus son in law and the rest of his stupid family…
The era of Stephanie McMahon
Stephanie McMahon is now Chairwoman and Co-CEO with Nick Khan. And she had her first appearance on Smackdown earlier tonight.
It’s not going to be a dramatic change, because Stephanie and HHH have been deeply involved in the business anyway. And Vince is still the majority shareholder.
He retired at a time when the brand is struggling to find its place in the modern world. There are some ongoing shady labor issues, but it’s still an overall surviving business with WWE Network included in Peacock in a $1 billion deal, a $1 billion contract with Fox, etc.
AEW is doing its best to compete, but WWE has such a large content archive, talent roster, footprint of live shows, and broadcast reach that I don’t see it ever going away. And I don’t see Stephanie getting distracted with failed side ventures like the World Bodybuilding Federation or XFL.
Overall, I think the long-term effects of Stephanie and HHH in charge will bring sports entertainment into a new era. Should be an interesting decade.