WWE & MLW antitrust lawsuit settlement was for $20 million

We now know the financial terms of WWE & MLW’s antitrust lawsuit settlement.

In January 2022, MLW filed a lawsuit accusing WWE of pressuring third parties to abandon contracts and prospective relationships with them. The lawsuit centered around potential deals with Vice TV and streaming service Tubi that MLW claimed WWE interfered with.

The two promotions reached a settlement in December 2023. Financial details were not disclosed at the time, but they were made public in TKO Group Holding’s 2023 business report that was released on Tuesday. The report reveals that WWE agreed to pay $20 million in the settlement:

For the twelve-month period ended December 31, 2023, the Company’s consolidated pre-tax results included $34.2 million in costs related to certain litigation matters at UFC and WWE, including the impact of a $20.0 million charge related to the settlement of an antitrust lawsuit at WWE. A reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA for the three and twelve-month periods ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 can be found in the supplemental schedule on page 14 of this release.

In a form filed with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission), it’s explicitly stated that the settlement was with MLW:

On January 11, 2022, a complaint was filed against WWE by MLW Media LLC (‘MLW’), captioned MLW Media LLC v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., No. 5:22-cv-00179-EJD (N.D. Cal.), alleging that WWE interfered with MLW’s contractual relationship with certain media platforms and engaged in other anticompetitive and unfair business practices in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and California law. On December 22, 2023, the parties notified the court that they had entered into a settlement agreement in the amount of $20.0 million and stipulated that the case should be voluntarily dismissed with prejudice. In light of the settlement, the case was dismissed with prejudice on December 26, 2023.

Founded by Court Bauer, MLW originally existed from 2002-2004 and has been operating since its return in 2017. MLW’s next show is Intimidation Games 2024 in Queens, New York this Thursday (February 29).