WWE officials, including Chief Content Officer Paul Levesque and President Nick Khan, have been discussing the success of hosting live events such as WrestleMania and the economic impact it has on host cities. With interest booming in hosting future events, potential host cities are bidding to be chosen as venues for WWE’s premium live events. Levesque mentioned at the CAA World Congress of Sports that the economic impact is a key factor in the bidding process, providing WWE with a list of options to choose from.
Looking ahead to future events, President Nick Khan mentioned that they will be changing tactics, possibly shifting away from outdoor stadiums on the East Coast in April to avoid competing with other major events like the Final Four. While WWE has not disclosed ticket sales for WrestleMania, Khan hinted at a potential total revenue of $38 million for the two-night event in Philadelphia. Additionally, WWE is preparing for the transition of “Raw” to Netflix in January as part of a 10-year, $5 billion deal. Levesque expressed confidence that WWE fans will follow Raw to the streaming platform, as the company has a history of successfully transitioning its audience to new locations.
Both the Netflix deal and the NBCUniversal deal to move “SmackDown” to the USA Network are seen as significant milestones for WWE. Levesque and Khan emphasized that these partnerships will be game-changing for the company and its viewers, signaling a shift towards digital platforms in the entertainment industry. As part of this shift, Khan also mentioned that WWE is exploring other opportunities in digital media such as creating original content for social media platforms like YouTube and TikTok. Overall, it seems that WWE is focused on expanding its reach beyond traditional television broadcasts and into new avenues of digital entertainment.