What’s the story?
According to the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, WrestleMania 33, which was held at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, had a paid attendance of 63,100. It appears that WWE has inflated its attendance figures, yet again.
In case you didn’t know...
WWE has a history of reporting inflated attendance figures. For instance, the company claims that WrestleMania 3 was attended by 93,173 people when the actual number was closer to 75,000. While several fans are puzzled by this practice, it plays into the idea that Vince McMahon wants his grandest spectacle to feel larger than life.
The heart of the matter
WWE officially announced an attendance of 75,245 along with a gate of 14.5 million dollars for WrestleMania 33. However, the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, which is the standard-bearer for professional wrestling journalism, claims that the Camping World Stadium had a paid attendance of 63,100 on April 2, 2017.
What's next?
It’s likely that several reports will be published about this matter for months to come, but we’ll probably never get a solid answer. Lest we forget, this is the same promotion that has refused to address the reports about WrestleMania 3.
Author’s take
While I can understand that an increased attendance number can make WrestleMania feel special, every wrestling fan with an internet connection knows the truth about these figures. It’s also frustrating to see this happen because the actual attendance numbers are impressive by themselves.
Also read: WWE announces many more records set at WrestleMania 33
Vince McMahon feels the need to inflate these numbers to impress the mainstream media. However, the visuals from the stadium were enough to blow anybody away. These sorts of stunts make the company look small and petty.
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