Former XFL commissioner Oliver Luck was reportedly fired by Vince McMahon for three reasons.
Luck and McMahon are currently engaged in a lawsuit after McMahon terminated his commissioner’s deal shortly before the XFL collapsed. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
Luck responded by suing McMahon for wrongful termination, and it’s believed his deal was somewhere in the range of $20 million.
With Oliver Luck suing Vince over wrongful termination and to get his salary paid, it has been revealed that Luck’s contract was 5 years for $20-25 million to lead the #XFL
Wow, OL was getting PAID.
— Konnor Fulk (@KonnorFulk) April 21, 2020
Now, McMahon’s lawyers have released a list of reasons why Luck was fired. According to Ben Fishcer, he was let go because of his handling of the league during the coronavirus pandemic, the signing of Antonio Callaway and “personal use of a XFL-issued iPhone.”
In a filing today, Vince McMahon’s lawyers claim he fired Oliver Luck for 3 reasons:
*”Gross neglect” of his job during the early days of the pandemic
*Signing Antonio Callaway despite XFL policy against hiring talent with legal troubles
*Personal use of a XFL-issued iPhone— Ben Fischer (@BenFischerSBJ) May 13, 2020
Luck’s lawyer says they will be issued a statement in response this afternoon.
— Ben Fischer (@BenFischerSBJ) May 13, 2020
Look, I’m not a lawyer, but I find it hard to believe any of these things will carry a lot of water in court.
He didn’t properly handle the coronavirus pandemic? What is that even supposed to mean? Not a single sports league in America other than the UFC is happening right now.
Obviously, details will come out, but what exactly would have been the perfect way to handle the pandemic as a first year football league?
The part that blows my mind is the personal use of a cell phone. That has to be a joke, right? Short of Luck texting ISIS officials or trading government secrets with the Chinese on his XFL phone, it’s a laughable claim.
Everyone I know uses their work phone for personal reasons. Every single one!
I sincerely hope like hell these depositions are filmed or aired live for the public to watch. The XFL was awesome, and it all came crashing down before the first season was over.
Now, it’s done, and fans are just left with the messy legal fallout. I’m not picking sides here. I just hope we get to squeeze a little more entertainment out of this situation.