(Reuters) – Vince McMahon has stepped down from his position at wrestling giant TKO Group and its subsidiary WWE, which he co-founded, following a lawsuit alleging sexual assault and trafficking, the company announced on Friday.
“I have decided to resign from my executive chairmanship and the TKO board of directors, effective immediately,” McMahon said in a statement released by TKO.
The lawsuit, filed by a former employee in federal court in Connecticut, accuses McMahon, WWE, and another executive of “physical and emotional abuse, sexual assault and trafficking at WWE,” and seeks unspecified costs and damages.
In response to the allegations, McMahon denied them in the statement, stating, “I intend to vigorously defend myself against these baseless accusations, and look forward to clearing my name.”
WWE President Nick Khan informed employees in a memo that McMahon “will no longer have a role with TKO Group Holdings or WWE.”
McMahon had previously retired from WWE in 2022 amid misconduct allegations and paid $17.4 million to the company to cover costs related to an investigation into that case. He later returned in January 2023.
The driving force behind the wrestling entertainment company, McMahon transformed it from a regional player in the 1980s to a global giant, with around $1 billion in revenue in 2021.
He introduced scripted matches, celebrity wrestlers, and glitz to make the brand more appealing to television audiences, and developed the concept of pay-per-view matches for major events like “WrestleMania” to expand its revenue base.
TKO was established last year when McMahon brokered a deal between WWE and the Endeavor Group-owned mixed martial arts franchise UFC.
(Reporting by Nilutpal Timsina in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)
