As you may or may not have noticed, WWE has seen an uptick in recent years when it comes to outside sponsorship during matches since Vince McMahon handed over the book to his son-in-law, Paul “Triple H” Levesque.

Now sure, the promotion has never been shy about making some money from outside sources, as Snickers has been sending money to Titan Towers for years to use Superstars in their commercials, but to my knowledge, the promotion has never had a Snickers match, which could be anything from a candy bar strung up in the middle of the ring Money in the Bank-style, to an American Gladiators-style battle with giant bars fashioned as jousting rods.

While it's hard to imagine that something like that final concept will come to pass any time soon, in TKO's most recent earnings call, Endeavor CEO Ari Emanuel did go on to reveal that Mr. McMahon is open to incorporating more sponsorships into WWE's presentation, with future rings looking like those of UFC very much a possibility.

“Vince [Vince McMahon] has been very open…. before he was clean in the ring and around. He is now very open to increasing the inventory that we can work with like we increased the inventory at the UFC, very happy about that, and we think there are huge opportunities around the stadium. That's a good sign,” Ari Emanuel said via Fightful. “We are starting, in some territories, looking at a Friday night, Saturday night, and Monday night for both WWE, UFC, and WWE again. That will give us an indication of our ability to put that on. Once we can prove that model, I think we can take it globally and move it domestically pretty easily. I'll re-emphasize that there is a ton of inventory now that Vince and the team are opening up at the WWE for us.”

Could the day eventually come when things like the Rey Mysterio Cinnamoji Toast Crunch become a regular part of WWE television? Will there be a day when there's a McDonald's M in the corner of a WWE ring, or more interestingly, on a performer's gear like the NBA's sponsorship badge? In this new world of TKO, anything is possible.

TKO has added two risk factors related to Vince McMahon.

With WWE now part of a publically traded company, the brand has to make filings with the SEC, which includes risk factors that could come into play for potential investors should they want to buy-in to the promotion.

In the promotion's most recent filing, as identified by Fightful, there have been two major changes directly associated with Mr. McMahon and the risk he presents to the stock value of TK should he produce negative publicity surrounding past, present, or even future improprieties.

The special committee of independent members of WWE’s Board of Directors’ investigation into allegations of misconduct by Mr. McMahon, and any further allegations and investigations may have an adverse financial and operational impact on our business performance.

On June 17, 2022, WWE and its then Board of Directors announced that a special committee of independent members of its Board of Directors (the “Special Committee”) was formed to investigate alleged misconduct by WWE’s then-Chief Executive Officer, Vincent K. McMahon. On July 22, 2022, Mr. McMahon resigned from all positions held with WWE but remained a stockholder with a controlling interest. On January 9, 2023, WWE’s Board of Directors elected Mr. McMahon as Executive Chairman thereto, and Mr. McMahon subsequently returned to WWE.

On July 25, 2022, based on the findings of the Special Committee investigation, WWE announced that it had determined that certain payments that Mr. McMahon agreed to make during the period from 2006 through 2022 (including amounts paid and payable in the future totaling $14.6 million) were not appropriately recorded as expenses in WWE’s consolidated financial statements. WWE subsequently identified two additional payments totaling $5.0 million unrelated to the alleged misconduct by Mr. McMahon that led to the Special Committee investigation, that Mr. McMahon made in 2007 and 2009 that were not appropriately recorded as expenses in the WWE’s consolidated financial statements. Together, these unrecorded expenses total $19.6 million (the “Unrecorded Expenses”). All payments underlying the Unrecorded Expenses have been or will be paid by Mr. McMahon personally. WWE determined that, while the amount of Unrecorded Expenses was not material in any individual period in which the Unrecorded Expenses arose, the aggregate amount of Unrecorded Expenses would be material if recorded entirely when identified in the second quarter of 2022. Accordingly, WWE revised its previously issued financial statements to record the Unrecorded Expenses in the applicable periods for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021, as well as the first quarter of 2021 and 2022. In light of the Unrecorded Expenses and related facts, WWE concluded that its internal control over financial reporting was not effective as a result of one or more material weaknesses. Although the Special Committee investigation was completed, WWE also received, and the Company may receive in the future, regulatory, investigative and enforcement inquiries, subpoenas, demands and/or other claims and complaints arising from, related to, or in connection with these matters.

Subsequent to WWE’s restatement for the Unrecorded Expenses, WWE was informed of certain additional claims, which have been settled by Mr. McMahon. When the amounts became probable and estimable in the fourth quarter of 2022, including consideration of events that occurred subsequent to December 31, 2022, WWE recorded an additional $7.4 million of expenses. Mr. McMahon has made or will make all related payments personally.

Professional costs resulting from WWE’s Special Committee’s investigation have been significant and are expected to continue to be significant as the Company continues to incur costs arising from ongoing and/or potentially new regulatory, investigative and enforcement inquiries, subpoenas and demands and claims. We expect Mr. McMahon to reimburse the Company for reasonable expenses incurred in connection with the investigation. Although we are not aware that significant business has been lost to date, it is possible that a change in the perceptions of our business partners could occur as a result of the investigation or other matters described above. In addition, as a result of the investigation or other matters described above, certain other operational changes, including without limitation other personnel changes, have occurred and may continue to occur in the future, which may have adverse financial and operational impacts on our business. Any adverse impacts as a result of the investigation and related matters, and any further allegations or investigations, could exacerbate any of the risks described herein.

Mr. McMahon’s membership on our Board could have adverse financial and operational impacts on our business.

Mr. McMahon’s membership on our Board could expose us to negative publicity and/or have other adverse financial and operational impacts on our business. His membership also may result in additional scrutiny or otherwise exacerbate the other risks described herein. Any of these outcomes could directly or indirectly have adverse financial and operational impacts on our business.

So what, you may ask, does that mean? Well, after working through Mr. McMahon's expansive and extensive payouts to previous employees for the harassment, WWE and TKO as a whole appear concerned that Mr. McMahon has and could continue to damage the brand's reputation. While this likely won't change anything now or moving forward, unless, of course, something sinister comes to light, it is interesting nonetheless, as it is a marked adjustment from the filings from September.