10 Wrestling Secrets Everyone Knows Except You
2. Papering The House
In the era of the brilliant WrestleTix twitter account, it's getting harder than ever for wrestling companies to bulsh*t their way through discourse on dodgy attendances or poor sales.
Luckily for WWE and AEW at very least, the visual presentation of a well-budgeted TV show can mask what in-building images of those empty hard camera sides reveal. Production is key and getting everybody shifted before airtime is always ideal, but almost all Raws, SmackDowns and Dynamites have tricks that can be played when sales aren't particularly strong. TNA were masters of this in their mid-00s heyday - the minuscule Impact Zone never looked small and always felt raucous despite many of the complimentary tickets going to passing Universal Studios tourists.
And then of course, there's free tickets for paid events.
Every company in history has done it, from comps through mates at small promotions right up to WWE sending out literal piles of tickets to local radio stations, schools and shopping centres when the going wasn't good. There's nothing like a sold out house, but sometimes those full-looking venues are literally nothing like a sold out house.