This Saturday, the WWE is scheduled to return to Saudi Arabia for one of its very lucrative and very controversial events. As was the case after the Saudi government planned the murder of journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, controversy also surrounds this weekend’s Crown Jewel pay-per-view. Just days before the broadcast is scheduled to air live, there are reports from The Wall Street Journal that both the United States and the Saudi government were told of possible attacks from Iran against Saudi Arabia, stemming from ongoing tension in the region. Reportedly, WWE officials are “monitoring” the situation, but with the plans that the roster will arrive in Saudi a few days before the show, the threat of harm to the talent extends beyond just the on-air time frame of the event.
With threats of international attacks a topic of conversation, along with the other negativity surrounding these Saudi events, you have to ask, is there a point where even the millions of dollars the company profits from these shows aren’t worth it?
Granted, I’m sure the old trope of “the show must go on” will be the motto when the stars board the plane, but I think it’s fair to at least weigh the options of this situation. When the company first announced its long-term and very profitable deal with the Saudi government, it was met with a slew of rightful criticism. However, from strictly a business perspective, it was a great move, especially for the stockholders and for the quarterly conference calls. Along with the company’s pair of billion-dollar TV deals over the span of five years with USA and Fox respectively, the Saudi shows are actually the most profitable events on the WWE calendar, as reports suggests the government pays around $30-40 million for each event.
These overseas events yield a higher profit margin than Wrestlemania.
Still, it’s important to keep this in the proper context, the WWE will continue to be the most profitable its been in its history based on the major TV deals and the Peacock deal. Technically, the company doesn’t need the Saudi money to continue to set profit records. At some point, doesn’t the revenue just become numbers on the page?
While I don’t think Vince McMahon, like him or not, would knowingly put his roster in specific danger, mostly because that’s ultimately the product he sells, and more importantly, he’s not quite as ruthless as some want to portray him, if he was still running the company, I don’t think there would be any hesitation to present the show as planned.
On the flip side, Triple H might want to weigh the options. Remember, when payment was held up a few years ago, Vince made the decision to cut the local broadcast feed to the show and then the roster was “unexpectedly” stuck at the airport with claims of mechanical problems with the plane. The talent didn’t get back in time for a Smackdown taping so the company scrambled to throw together a line-up for the live broadcast. At the time, there were rumors that the talent was intentionally being kept at the airport because McMahon made the decision to cut the local broadcast feed. Nothing was officially confirmed, but most seem to speculate that the talent were used as pawns because of the payment disagreement. Obviously, those issues were resolved and the company was paid per the agreement since WWE returned there. However, at some point, aren’t there enough red flags that even the millions of dollars isn’t enough to put the roster in jeopardy?
The best term regarding Saudi Arabia would be monitoring the situation. All plans are for the show at this moment but you can't control the real world.
— Dave Meltzer (@davemeltzerWON) November 1, 2022
Aside from the murder of a journalist and the criticism of the treatment of women in the country, the whole agreement seems sleazy because it essentially proves that with enough money, anything is possible. The Saudi government has massive wealth from the oil industry in the country and uses that cash to buy propaganda material in an attempt to claim the country is making progress in equality. It’s not limited to WWE, as boxing, golf, and other entertainment acts accepted the Saudi cash to perform in the country.
Ted DiBiase was right, everyone has a price.
Granted, I’m not in the position to make millions of dollars from this event so it’s rather easy for me to say this, but my two cents on the whole situation would be to postpone the event until the tension in the region is resolved. God forbid, if there was a political attack at the venue or during the event, it would be the absolutely worst case scenario for the WWE. That’s why this situation is very risky because there’s very little margin for error so to speak. Either nothing happens and everyone is fine, and hopefully, that’s how this event happens, or there’s an attack that could put lives at risk.
It goes without saying that the Saudis are paying for star power from the western world so that’s why Logan Paul was booked against Roman Reigns. These events, despite being produced by the WWE, aren’t booked for a sports entertainment audience, but rather the Saudi government since that’s what the country pays for. Brock Lesnar is on the card in a match with Bobby Lashley, which might’ve been a major money match at The Royal Rumble, but will be put on Peacock at noon on a Saturday because of the mega cash the Saudis pay for these events. That’s another key point to remember within this whole discussion, WWE management dilutes its own scheduled booking to accommodate these shows. That’s how important the Saudi money is to the company.
Still, at what point does the WWE draw the line?
Listen, I sincerely hope that everyone is safe and absolutely nothing happens while the talent is there, but we have to put this in the proper scope. There are political tensions in the region and international attacks won’t be delayed simply because the WWE is in the country. If anything, I’m worried that a big time event from an organization from the west might be seen as a target if Iran actually has an attack planned. We live in an often sad world, but it’s the harsh reality. Again, I sincerely hope that any speculation will be moot, but I’d still say that WWE management truly needs to consider if the money is worth the potential risk to the roster.
What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.
Until next week
-Jim LaMotta
E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Twitter @jimlamotta
