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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is part of an investor group that has agreed to terms in a purchase of the XFL for around $15 million. His ex-wife Dany Garcia, now his business partner, and RedBird Capital Partners will own and operate the XFL if it is restarted. Vince McMahon shut down the XFL in the midst of a season due to all pro sports being shut down at the start of the pandemic. Garcia indicates the XFL could restart even without a vaccine or the pandemic being under control.
“We’re planning for it,” Garcia told ESPN. “We’re doing all the steps that need to happen for the execution of that. But we’re also being mindful to what has actually been successful. It has been really interesting to see that [in sports], when you create a bubble, your players are safe. When you don’t, it’s chaos. We are a league, because of the number of teams we have, that actually can create a bubble environment. Those discussions are active.”
The sale is pending a review by bankruptcy court this Friday. Garcia told ESPN that she and Johnson would have a hand-on approach to running the league. She also said they would aim to bring back a lot of the employees who built the league behind the scenes, but were laid off when McMahon shut the league down in April.
“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,” said Johnson in a prepared statement. “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.”
Johnson once worked for Vince McMahon as one of WWE’s top stars. He also played college football at the University of Miami.
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