Most-Watched SummerSlam® Of All Time
SummerSlam Smashes Viewership, Gate, Sponsorship & Merchandise Records
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
STAMFORD, Conn., August 7, 2023 – WWE® (NYSE: WWE) today announced that SummerSlam which emanated from Ford Field in Detroit became the most-watched and highest-grossing SummerSlam in company history. The premium live event set new records for viewership, gate, sponsorship and merchandise.
With 59,194 in attendance in the Motor City, SummerSlam generated a record gate of $8.5 million, the largest gate for any non-WrestleMania event ever. It was the most-watched SummerSlam in company history and among the top three audiences in the history of WWE on Peacock.
SummerSlam generated the most sponsorship revenue for any non-WrestleMania event ever with $7 million, up 23 percent versus 2022. Slim Jim®, C4 and Rocket Mortgage were among WWE’s sponsors for the premium live event.
In partnership with special event retail partner Fanatics, merchandise sales were up 60 percent versus the record set in 2021, marking the best performance in company history for any premium live event outside of WrestleMania. On Location packages set a new SummerSlam record, up 47 percent versus 2022.
In addition, SummerSlam became the most-viewed social SummerSlam of all time with over 230 million views and four million hours of video consumed, a 26 percent increase over last year.
About WWE
WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The Company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly entertainment on its television programming, premium live events, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE’s TV-PG programming can be seen in more than 1 billion homes worldwide in 25 languages through world-class distribution partners including NBCUniversal, FOX, BT Sport, Sony India and Rogers. The award-winning WWE Network includes all premium live events, scheduled programming and a massive video-on-demand library and is currently available in more than 180 countries. In the United States, NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, is the exclusive home to WWE Network.
Additional information on WWE can be found at wwe.com and corporate.wwe.com.
Media Contact:
Chuck Kingsbury
Chuck.Kingsbury@wwecorp.com
Investors Contact:
Seth Zaslow
203 352 1026
Seth.Zaslow@wwecorp.com
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These forward-looking statements are subject to uncertainties relating to, without limitation, the consummation of the pending business combination with UFC in the expected timeline or at all; diversion of management’s time and attention due to the pending business combination with UFC: the availability of sufficient cash at the close of our transaction with UFC to distribute to shareholders of the new public company in line with current expectations; possible disruptions in our content delivery and online operations and our those of our business partners; privacy norms and regulations; our need to continue to develop creative and entertaining programs and events; our need to retain and continue to recruit key performers; the possibility of a decline in the popularity of our brand of sports entertainment: possible adverse changes in the regulatory atmosphere and related private sector initiatives: the highly competitive. rapidly changing and increasingly fragmented nature of the markets in which we operate and/or our inability to compete effectively, especially against competitors with greater financial resources or marketplace presence; uncertainties associated with international markets including possible disruptions and reputational risks; our difficulty or inability to promote and conduct our live events and/or other businesses if we do not comply with applicable regulations; our dependence on our intellectual property rights, our need to protect those rights, and the risks of our infringement of others’ intellectual property rights; potential substantial liability in the event of accidents or injuries occurring during our physically demanding events; large public events as well as travel to and from such events; our expansion into new or complementary businesses, strategic investments and/or acquisitions; our accounts receivable; the construction and move to our new leased corporate and media production headquarters; litigation and other actions, investigations or proceedings; a change in the tax laws of key jurisdictions; inflationary pressures and interest rate changes; our indebtedness including our convertible notes; our potential failure to meet market expectations for our financial performance; our share repurchase program; the impact of actions by Mr. McMahon (our controlling shareholder, whose interests could conflict with those of our Class A common stockholders); the substantial number of shares are eligible for sale by the McMahons and the sale, or the perception of possible sales, of those shares could cause our stock price to decline; and the volatility in trading prices of our Class A common stock. In addition. our dividend and share repurchases are dependent on a number of factors, including. among other things, our liquidity and historical and projected cash flow, strategic plan (including alternative uses of capital, our financial results and condition. contractual and legal restrictions, general economic and competitive conditions and such other factors as our Board may consider relevant.
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