Dwayne Johnson Part of Investment Team That Purchased XFL for $15M
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, along with business partner/ex-wife Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale of investment firm RedBird Capital, has purchased XFL parent company Alpha Entertainment for $15 million.
First reported by Sportico’s Scott Soshnick, this purchase comes just days before the football league was set to go to a bankruptcy auction.
In a statement on the purchase first shared by Confirming that the @xfl2020 has been purchased by a group that includes Dwayne Johnson, aka The Rock, for $15 million. Deal contingent on court approval Aug. 7. Quote from Johnson below. The purchasing firm is Redbird Capital Partners. First reported by @Sportico pic.twitter.com/4pjwncCq0D
— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) August 3, 2020?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1290283529746575360%7Ctwgr%5E&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fbleacherreport.com%2Farticles%2F2902885-the-rock-redbird-capital-buy-vince-mcmahons-xfl-for-15m-after-bankruptcy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, Johnson says, “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. 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.”
The XFL, of course, was originally founded by WWE CEO Vince McMahon in 2001 but only lasted one season. The league was revived in 2018 with its inaugural season taking place in 2020. The season, however, was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic. In April, the league folded, ceasing all operations and laying off all of its employees.
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Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights