The XFL, the Vince McMahon-owned professional league that declared bankruptcy in April, has been sold for $15 million to a group headed by one of McMahon”™s former employees, professional wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
Johnson teamed with Dany Garcia, his ex-wife and business partner, and the private investment firm RedBird Capital to acquire the XFL before it was put up for auction. The acquisition will require the approval of the bankruptcy court before it can be finalized.
“With pride and gratitude for all that I”™ve built with my own two hands, I plan to apply these callouses to the XFL, and look forward to creating something special for the players, fans and everyone involved for the love of football,” said Johnson in a press release.
The XFL filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April, listing up to $50 million in debts. Johnson did not offer a timeline on when the XFL would be resurrected.
This year marked the second time that McMahon attempted to create an alternative to the National Football League. A first version came in 2001 as a joint venture between McMahon”™s World Wrestling Federation (now Stamford-based WWE) and NBC, but the league never found the audience needed to sustain its operations.
The new version of the XFL kicked off in February, but shut down one month later due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In April, McMahon laid off nearly all of the XFL staff.
