What started as a bizarre rumor making its way around the Twitterverse this week, involving a possible return of the XFL and a new brainchild from the mind of Vince Mahon, has in fact turned out to be a very real story…

In a statement made to members of the media, WWE officials have confirmed that Vince McMahon is “personally funding” a brand new endeavor called Alpha Entertainment, which will explore some alternative options in the world of sports and entertainment. The project will be reportedly completely independent of WWE.

Here’s the official statement:

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“Vince McMahon has established and is personally funding a separate entity from WWE, Alpha Entertainment, to explore investment opportunities across the sports and entertainment landscapes, including professional football. Mr. McMahon has nothing further to announce at this time.”

This entire strange, seemingly random story began when a conservative blogger named Brad Shepard reported that “Vince McMahon is looking to bring back the XFL and may announce it on January 25th, 2018.” That on its own would have been par for the course in daily wrestling rumors, but the story continued to pick up traction as other sources claimed Shepard’s report was accurate.

David Bixenspan of Deadspin reported that rumors of the XFL comeback had been “floating around DMS” on Friday afternoon, and was the first journalist to post the response from WWE confirming Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment a few hours later, after reaching out for an official statement.

Of course, this doesn’t confirm that pro wrestling’s most popular mogul is in fact trying to resurrect the ill-advised XFL, which folded after just one season in 2001. All we know at this point is that Mr. McMahon is in fact privately funding a new business venture – which in itself is an intriguing prospect – and that his new Alpha Entertainment will “explore investment opportunities” that include professional football.

A WWE spokesperson issued the attached statement to me & @Deadspin in response to my inquiry about tonight’s rumors of a soon to be announced XFL revival. They declined further comment. Whatever Vince McMahon’s “Alpha Entertainment” is, it’s self-funded & separate from WWE. pic.twitter.com/oT0Oxyi2fV

— David Bixenspan (@davidbix) December 16, 2017