Vince McMahon On If WWE Will Partner Or Merge With The XFL

Just days before the start of the 2020 XFL season, Vince McMahon took part in the WWE 2019 earnings call on Thursday. McMahon was also asked about his personal investment in the XFL and if that will affect the WWE in terms of public equity.

"No, there is none of that," replied McMahon. "We have 400 employees over here and it's run by itself and vendors."

WWE Interim CFO Frank Riddick clarified that there are no plans for the XFL to be a part of WWE's investments.

In December 2017 the WWE issued a filing to the SEC which stated that McMahon had sold $100 million of WWE stock to fund Alpha Entertainment. The XFL is owned by Alpha Entertainment and this was done to further separate the WWE from the XFL.

With the original XFL in 2001, WWE was a co-owner as they owned 50 percent of the company with TV partner NBC owning the other 50 percent.

During the original XFL's run, there was some crossover between WWE and XFL including The Rock cutting an on-field promo before a game. McMahon was asked if there are any plans for WWE to invest, partner or merge with this incarnation of the XFL.

"No, the XFL is a separate entity completely. We have 400 employees and the kickoff, of course, is this coming Saturday. It's completely separate," stated McMahon.

In December 2018 the AAF approached McMahon and the XFL about a potential merger, according to a report from Sports Business Daily. McMahon rejected the request and the AAF began its season in February 2019 and filed for bankruptcy two months later.

The 2020 XFL season kicks off this Saturday at 2pm ET with the Seattle Seadragons taking on the D.C. Defenders on ABC, followed by a 5pm ET game between the L.A. Wildcats and the Houston Roughnecks on FOX. Wrestling Inc. will have a special podcast following Saturday's games with Matt Morgan, Raj Giri and Glenn Rubenstein discussing the new league, how the debut was executed and more.