Vince McMahon Makes $17 Million Dollar Payment to WWE Special Committee Investigation

Vince McMahon has made a significant payment of $17.4 million towards the Board of Directors’ Special Committee investigation.

The payment was made in relation to the investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against McMahon and former Head of Talent Relations John Laurinaitis. This new WWE SEC filing notes that McMahon entered into an agreement to reimburse the company for the costs incurred, which were for a period that ran through January 31, 2023. The agreement includes a release of McMahon by WWE regarding the payment of the costs and a release of the company by McMahon for the investigation and related matters.

The Board of Directors tried to get McMahon to sign a letter in December, agreeing to pay the costs and not return to WWE in exchange for a guarantee that the Board would not sue him for the same costs. However, McMahon returned to the company in January to lead a potential sale of the company, as well as media rights fees.

This development comes after WWE reported that it racked up $21.7 million in costs related to the investigation for the year 2022, in its Q4 & Full Year 2022 earnings release. McMahon had agreed to reimburse the company for “reasonable expenses related to the Special Committee investigation, net of any insurance proceeds.”

The SEC filing includes the following:

Item 1.01 Entry Into a Material Definitive Agreement.

On March 20, 2023, World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. (the “Company”) entered into a reimbursement agreement (the “Agreement”) with Vincent K. McMahon, the Company’s Executive Chairman, director and controlling stockholder. The Agreement provides that Mr. McMahon will pay the Company approximately $17.4 million to reimburse the Company for the costs that have been incurred and paid by the Company and/or its subsidiaries, through January 31, 2023, in connection with and/or arising from the investigation conducted by a special committee of the Company’s board of directors, related revisions to the Company’s financial statements and other related matters. Such payment was made on March 23, 2023. The Agreement further provides that Mr. McMahon will also review in good faith and reimburse the Company for additional costs incurred by the Company and/or its subsidiaries subsequent to January 31, 2023 (or that have been incurred by the Company and/or its subsidiaries and not yet paid as of January 31, 2023), in connection with and/or arising from the same matters.

The Agreement also includes a release of Mr. McMahon by the Company regarding the recovery of the costs described above and a release of the Company by Mr. McMahon regarding the investigation and related matters described above.

The investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against McMahon and Laurinaitis has been ongoing for a while now, and the payment made by McMahon is a significant development in the case. Stay tuned for more updates on this story.

What are your thoughts on Vince McMahon’s payment towards the investigation? Do you think it will have any impact on WWE’s future? Leave a comment.