8 Things We Learned From WWE's First Quarter 2017 Earnings
5. Live Attendances Are Through The Roof
One area in which WWE are undoubtedly excelling is live event attendance. Much of this comes from volume: WWE held 91 shows compared to 75 in Q1 2016, bringing a 27% jump in income from $25.3 million to $32.1 million. This is a huge success, and while Q1 numbers are traditionally higher than the rest of the year, WWE’s total USA/Canada main roster attendance figure was a ten-year high at 546,000.
Holding more events and bringing extra fans through the door has a knock-on effect on merchandise sales. While American and Canadian attendees are still spending the same average sum at events ($10.09 per head), the total revenue figure increased from $5.5m in Q1 2016 to $7.1m this year, which manifested as a $600k increase in profit.
While “WWE hold too many shows” is a valid complaint for the TV viewer, the company’s strategy of increasing their total number of events is paying dividends. Over 100,000 additional fans attended shows this year compared to Q1 2016, but individual audience numbers are also on the up, with each event attracting an average of 6,000 in Q1 2017, up from 5,800 in 2016.