Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson returning to football after buying the XFL
The Rock has come back to ... the XFL?
One of Dwayne Johnson’s iconic catch phrases from his wrestling career, though it would end with the city he was in, can be used to describe his return to football.
One of Hollywood’s biggest stars, Johnson joined Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital to buy the XFL for $15 million, according to multiple outlets.
Sportico was the first to report Johnson, who played college football at the University of Miami in the early 1990s, snagging the professional football league “just hours before a planned auction was scheduled to begin.”
The outlet also reported Johnson’s business partner and ex-wife, Dany Garcia, is “an equal stakeholder with him.”
The XFL originally was founded by WWE CEO and chairman Vince McMahon. The league, which folded shortly after its debut in 2001, announced its return in 2018. However, the league ended its 2020 season in March due to the global coronavirus pandemic brought on by COVID-19, and then filed for bankruptcy in April.
According to Sportico, the bid involving Johnson, Garcia and Cardinale was the only one qualified and is pending bankruptcy court approval at a hearing scheduled for this Friday, with an expected closing date around August 21.
“The acquistion 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, according to ESPN. “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.”
