Vince McMahon and Nick Khan touted WWE's massive financial and viewership success over the past year during today's Q4 Earnings Call. The company witnessed a significant increase in overall viewership, especially in comparison to their numbers on the former WWE Network.
After NBC Universal acquired exclusive rights to distribute Network content on its streaming platform, Peacock, the US Version of the Network was discontinued in April 2021. The deal included live events, documentaries, and any other original content produced by the company.
According to WWE, viewership for multiple Premium Live Events was up from 2019, including Extreme Rules, Money in the Bank, Survivor Series, SummerSlam, and Crown Jewel, which saw the biggest increase at over 75%.
Chief Brand Officer Stephanie McMahon also noted that this year's Royal Rumble was the most active WWE event on the Peacock platform to date, with overall viewership up 45% from the 2020 Rumble.
In addition, it was revealed that Day 1 was a historic event for Peacock, as it was one of the highest-viewed events in the history of the platform.
WWE saw historical revenue, despite Covid-19 Pandemic and talent releases
Today's 2021 Q4 earnings report revealed that the company grossed over $1Billion in revenue in 2021, which is the highest in its history. The company also had a net income of over $180 Million, showing a significant rebound from any effects of the Covid-19 Pandemic.
“In 2021, we reached a significant milestone of over $1 billion in revenue, for the first time in the company’s history. We ended the year with strong performance across each of our business lines that reflected the engagement of a wider audience with distribution on new digital platforms, including Peacock, and the return of fans at our live events,” said Vince McMahon. (h/t Fightful)
The report did cause some fans to criticize the company on social media. Many slammed the 2021 talent releases, especially since the company is currently almost twice as profitable as they were during the height of the Attitude Era.