WWE Sale Heating Up, Could Stephanie McMahon Return?

It may be a touch earlier than expected, but it seems a possible WWE sale is heating up. Plus, could Stephanie McMahon return to the company?

WWE Sale Heating Up

Ever since Vince forced himself back as we turned to 2023, this was on the table…but now it sounds like a potential WWE sale is heating up.

According to Fightful, things are definitely picking up steam as we head to Hollywood.

If anything, things could actually be heating up sooner than expected.

Early on, once we got past the rumors of an imminent Saudi sale, things turned to pure speculation.

The usual suspects were thrown out: FOX, Comcast, UFC and so on. Even Tony Khan was theorized.

But once things got quiet, signs started to indicate any talks or deals would likely happen after WrestleMania.

Well, remember how the other day we noted that WWE is working to capitalize on any strategic or thematic opportunities relative to premium live events?

WrestleMania being in Hollywood this weekend, with the company open to a sale couldn’t work out much better.

FOX and Comcast (by way of NBCUniversal) have significant west coast operations, so that doesn’t hurt things.

According to one CNBC report (and they would be well connected), Comcast is likely actually out of the running, which is a bit of surprise.

The purchase there makes too much sense. Even before the likelihood of a sale became apparent, there had been rumors for years.

Regardless, now that WrestleMania is basically here, we can expect sales talks to really heat up.

Could Stephanie McMahon Return?

Speaking of coming back, could Stephanie McMahon return to WWE?

The daughter of Vince has certainly had an interesting year.

From taking a leave of absence, dealing with her husband’s health scare, then coming back to become CEO…and then finally completely leaving, it was eventful.

Now, amidst talks of possible sales, could Stephanie return?

Possibly, maybe.

This isn’t word from Stephanie McMahon herself, but rather chatter surrounding the talks.

Interestingly, per the Fightful report, most companies remotely linked to a WWE sale seemed not interested in keeping Vince McMahon around.

Also of note, Vince is said to be aware of this, and on board with a sale that would mean he had no future working with new ownership.

That bit runs counter to some of the rumors around the earlier Saudi Arabia “offers”.

What was noted, however, is that some potential buyers could actually look to bring Stephanie McMahon back into the fold-should she be open to it.

More specifically, the report noted that this would be a very large deal. That covers both the strategic and financial implications, to name just a couple.

To that end, when you are considering the interested parties-say FOX or Disney-these potential buyers are doing their research.

Prospective buyers know what is winning over fans and helping morale, as well as what is not. Given everything that has gone down, it seems the loud fan reactions to Vince leaving (and forcing his way back) have not gone unnoticed.

Whether she wants back or not remains to be seen. Could you imagine if say, Disney bought WWE and in doing so, brought Stephanie McMahon back?