STAMFORD, CT (CelebrityAccess) — While the relaunch of Vince McMahon’s XFL football league unraveled quickly after it debuted earlier this year just as the coronavirus pandemic began to ramp up internationally, all is apparently not done for the ill-fated brand.
According to former wrestling star turned actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and a private equity investor Red Bird Capital, has acquired the XFL from its founder Vince McMahon for a reported $15 million just before it went up for a bankruptcy auction.
Dany Garcia, Johnson’s ex-wife and business partner, is also an investor in the company, according to Johnson.
RedBird Capital Partners is a private equity founded in 2014 by Gerry Cardinale with a reported $4bn under management. Its portfolio includes investment in technology and sports companies, including NFL On Location Experiences, OneTeam Partners, the Tolouse Foot and the regional sports network YES.
McMahon originally launched the XFL in 2001, trying to bring a the professional wrestling aesthetic to the world of professional football that operated as a single organization rather than the franchise system used by most professional sports in the United States. However, the format failed to attract fans and folded after its inaugural season.
McMahon announced plans to relaunch the league in 2018, after investing a reported $400 million, and dropping the more outre elements borrowed from the wrestling world.
The league began play in February, just as COVID-19 was raging in Italy and the league made it for five games before suspending operations in March and announced plans to file for bankruptcy in April.
