April 5, 2004 Observer Newsletter: Business numbers for WM XX, Plane Ride from Hell lawsuit, more

  • F4W Staff
  • By 

Wrestlemania XX might wind up being the biggest money pro wrestling event of all-time.

WWE preliminary estimates are 825,000 buys for the show, and a 1.53 percent buy rate. That would make it the third biggest show, trailing Wrestlemanias 17 and 18, as far as number of buys. But because the price increased from $39.95 to $49.95, in actual revenue, this could end up being the biggest. The company is hoping that when all is said and done, it will wind up doing between 900,000 and 950,000 buys.

Based on preliminary estimates, the show would gross an estimated $44 million from PPV, live event and merchandise. Of the PPV gross of an estimated $41.2 million, WWE’s percentage would be about $18.5 million. The total figure for all revenue for Wrestlemania X-7, headlined by Rock vs. Steve Austin, was $46.5 million, even with the lower PPV price. If this show ends up topping 875,000 buys, it would break that record.

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