5 Surprising Revelations From The WWE Earnings Report

3. Is The End Nigh For Live Events?

Live audiences are shrinking and WWE knows it.

Normally a steady earner for the company, live events actually cost WWE $1.1 million this quarter.

The reason for the loss is obvious. Across the ninety live shows held since mid July, attendance figures were down by 8% in the US and a whopping 18% internationally year-on-year.

Compounding the issue is that these figures include ticket sales for SummerSlam and Super Show-Down, each of which were massive earners for the company. The problem then is that pay-per-view profit is offset by the lack of enthusiasm for WWE‘s other offerings.

With Raw, SmackDown and the monthly pay-per-views not going anywhere, the door is therefore open for WWE to reduce (or possibly eliminate) the number of house shows it puts on, should this trend continue.

Of course, one wouldn’t expect any drastic changes to the schedule any time soon, but if live audiences keep shrinking, WWE could well choose to focus on the money it earns from television and the network, while cutting its losses elsewhere.

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