Vince McMahon retires as CEO, chairman of WWE amid misconduct allegations

Vince McMahon is retiring as chairman and CEO of WWE, he announced Friday.

He said his daughter Stephanie McMahon and WWE president Nick Khan will serve as co-CEOs.

The 76-year-old stepped down from his roles as chairman and CEO in June after it was reported that he paid a $3-million hush-money settlement to a former employee over an alleged affair.

WWE opened an investigation into McMahon, who remained in charge of creative content, with Stephanie taking over as interim CEO.

It was later reported that McMahon paid a total of $12 million to four women to quiet allegations of sexual misconduct.

"As I approach 77 years old, I feel it's time for me to retire as chairman and CEO of WWE," McMahon said in a statement. "Throughout the years, it's been a privilege to help WWE bring you joy, inspire you, thrill you, surprise you, and always entertain you. I would like to thank my family for mightily contributing to our success, and I would also like to thank all of our past and present superstars and employees for their dedication and passion for our brand.

"Most importantly, I would like to thank our fans for allowing us into your homes every week and being your choice of entertainment. I hold the deepest appreciation and admiration for our generations of fans all over the world who have liked, currently like, and sometimes even love our form of sports entertainment."

McMahon purchased his father's World Wide Wrestling Federation in 1982. He built the WWE into a global, billion-dollar brand with the hugely successful "Attitude Era" of the late 1990s. It made the likes of "Stone Cold" Steve Austin and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson into household names, kickstarting the company's domination of the industry.

McMahon was also a consistent on-screen presence, playing a villainous version of himself known as "Mr. McMahon" and feuding with the likes of Austin.

The WWE also announced earlier Friday that Paul "Triple H" Levesque, Stephanie's husband, will return to the company as head of talent relations.