Actor and former wrestling star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson is reportedly part of a group of investors who are buying the XFL for $15 million after the spring football league went bankrupt in its return season amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Sportico reported Monday that Johnson and RedBird Capital’s Gerry Cardinale bought league together hours before it was set to hit the auction block. Johnson’s ex-wife Dany Garcia is also a stakeholder. The two have been business partners for 10 years, according to Garcia’s publicist.
The transaction is still subject to bankruptcy court approval, according to a press release. The deal is expected to close around later this month.
Johnson, 48, previously played football at the University of Miami, where he won a national title in 1991 before following in his father Rocky’s footsteps and becoming a wrestler.
Actor and former wrestling star Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson (left) is reportedly part of a group of investors who are buying the XFL for $15 million after the spring football league went bankrupt in its return season amid the coronavirus pandemic. Sportico reported Monday that Johnson and RedBird Capital’s Gerry Cardinale bought league together hours before it was set to be auctioned. The two reportedly split the purchase evenly, although Johnson’s ex-wife Dany Garcia (right) is also expected to be a stakeholder, according to Sportico
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The XFL was originally launched by WWE CEO Vince McMahon (right) and NBC in 2001, but folded after one season of spring football. McMahon spent $200 million restarting the league for the 2020 season, according to his attorneys. Although a whopping 3 million viewers tuned in for the first week of games, the audience was about half that size five weeks later when play stopped due to the pandemic. The league went bankrupt in April, leading to a legal battle between McMahon and XFL commissioner Oliver Luck (left), who filed a $23.8 million wrongful termination lawsuit against the wrestling mogul
The Tampa Bay Vipers line up against the LA Wildcats at Dignity Health Sports Park during an XFL game on March 8 in Carson, California. The XFL suspended operations and laid off all of its employees on April 10 and filed for bankruptcy protection on April 13
‘The acquisition of the XFL with my talented partners, Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale, is an investment for me that’s rooted deeply in two things – my passion for the game and my desire to always take care of the fans,’ Johnson said in a statement.
‘For Dwayne, Gerry and myself, this property represents an incredible opportunity,’ said Garcia. ‘It is the confluence of great passion, tradition and possibility. Sports and entertainment are the foundations of the businesses I have built. Melding our expertise combined with our commitment to deliver exciting and inspiring unique content, has us all focused on developing the XFL brand into a multi-media experience that our athletes, partners and fans will proudly embrace and love.’
The XFL was originally launched by WWE CEO Vince McMahon and NBC in 2001, but folded after one season of spring football.
McMahon spent $200 million restarting the league for the 2020 season, according to his attorneys.
Although a whopping 3 million viewers tuned in for the first week of games, the audience was about half that size five weeks later when play stopped due to the pandemic.
The league went bankrupt in April, leading to a legal battle between McMahon and XFL commissioner Oliver Luck, who filed a $23.8 million wrongful termination lawsuit against the wrestling mogul.
In his lawsuit, Luck attached part of his agreement, signed by McMahon, that ‘irrevocably and unconditionally’ guaranteed his $20 million salary.
McMahon claims Luck was fired for cause.
Johnson, 48, previously played football at the University of Miami (pictured), where he won a national title in 1991 before following in his father Rocky’s footsteps and becoming a wrestler
Despite the XFL’s financial problems, its global investment bank, Houlihan Lokey, told The Athletic in May that there were several bidders. One likely reason is the fact that the XFL relies on television revenue, as opposed to ticket sales, which could be prohibited in 2021 if the pandemic continues.
‘I understand the Debtor has modeled for 2021 a made-for-TV, 12-week tournament-style approach to its business, since the XFL is particularly well suited for a crowd-free experience that could thrive in the current environment, given its existing innovations such as in-game audio from players and coaches and live on-screen sports wagering information,’ Houlihan managing partner William Hardie said.
In its bankruptcy filing, the XFL’s parent company, Alpha Entertainment, said the league had $10 million in assets and $50 million in liabilities.
At a May bankruptcy hearing, McMahon vowed not to buy the XFL back at auction.
‘I don’t know why that’s out there, making me out to be the bad guy … I’m going to buy the XFL back for pennies on the dollar, basically,’ McMahon said in the deposition, as reported by ESPN. ‘That helped me move into the direction of, ‘I’m not going to be a bidder, not going to have anything to do with it.’ I do hope that someone will pay a lot of money for it, and I do hope that it will survive.’
James Butler #28 of the Houston Roughnecks celebrates with the crowd after thinking he scored on a run during the second quarter against the Seattle Dragons during an XFL game at TDECU Stadium on March 7, 2020 in Houston