Vince McMahon's incredible week: The blueprint to steal the spotlight

If life in the spotlight these days is based on the ability to remain relevant, 72-year-old Vince McMahon had quite a week.

On Monday, he celebrated the 25th anniversary of Raw by reprising his role of "Mr. McMahon" in meeting Stone Cold Steve Austin once again. The ratings for Raw 25 were through the roof -- 4.5 million viewers -- which is the best WWE rating since March 2015.

On Thursday, he announced that he was rebooting his once-failed pro football league, the XFL, some 17 years after its failure. On Friday, his WWE stock hit an all-time high, which meant -- on paper at least -- he made $15 million from Monday through Friday. And on Sunday, his Royal Rumble generated more buzz on social media than the Pro Bowl, and garnered plenty of attention despite going up against the Grammys.

The night ended with the announcement of the WWE's agreement with Ronda Rousey, who, a short time ago, was the most-talked-about woman in the world before her two quick and shocking UFC losses. In typical McMahon and WWE style, the "Hot Ronda" shirt she wore on the pay-per-view broadcast was available in the WWE online shop minutes later.

Vince McMahon's three big moments stole the spotlight during a week in which the NFL typically dominates our attention. Ethan Miller/Getty Images
"The stock started to rise in November and it has just gone up and up and straight through the roof," said Laura Martin, a senior media analyst at Needham & Co., a New York-based investment bank and asset management firm.

Martin said institutional investors love the WWE because of its mature digital model as the rest of the world tries to play catch-up.

Many were confused why the stock went up when McMahon announced the return of the XFL. McMahon sold about $100 million worth of stock to fund a venture that is backing the league. Martin suggests maybe that's because investors were impressed with his restraint.

"When he's done other projects that have had some risk, he has funded them through the WWE," Martin said. "The fact that he pulled back here and is taking the risk himself is huge."