10 Things We Learned From Eric Bischoff's Podcast On Returning To WWE
8. He Originally Requested A 1 September 2019 Start Date
Yes, 1 September.
That wasn't going to work for WWE. Bischoff's earliest meetings with Vince were in June, and they fancied getting things up and running ASAP. The problem was that Eric has other commitments he didn't want to ditch, and he also had to take care of business at home before moving to Connecticut.
Eventually, he compromised with McMahon and tried to arrange a 25 July start date. Again, the WWE patriarch said no, and the kick off was moved forward to 15 July. Bischoff actually arrived in Stamford on 14 July and started his new role proper two days later on the 16th.
WWE were sorting things out with FOX ahead of SmackDown's jump that October, and they needed Bischoff to be hands-on and present for discussions. Had he started on 1 September, Eric would've had just over one full month of experience in his new job before the show leapt over to its new home.