Just like other sports organizations, WWE superstars like Hulk Hogan and Brock Lesnar can be paid millions. However, unlike in other sports, the lesser-known wrestlers don’t make as much. That’s because, just like the UFC, a lot of variables are at play when it comes to a WWE wrestler’s pay.
As Forbes reported, the main source of income for WWE wrestlers comes from their base salary. Since wrestlers don’t have a union, each one negotiates with the WWE concerning contracts and salaries. As a result, the base pay for each wrestler varies wildly. For example, one of the lowest base salaries Forbes mentioned was $52,000 a year, while one of the highest was at $5 million a year.
That said, since the WWE considers its wrestlers as independent contractors, these salaries are not set in stone either. For example, Forbes wrote that, if a wrestler gets too injured to perform for a few weeks, then their salary can be docked for every show that they miss.
But of course, since the WWE tries to keep a tight lid about its contracts, other details are scarce when it comes to the average salary for a WWE wrestler. Forbes said that WWE claimed that the average wrestler makes $500,000 a year, but since WWE keeps things so secretive, that number may not necessarily be true.
Bonus income
Like in other companies, the WWE also offers bonuses and incentives. That said, since each contract can be different, it’s not clear what the terms and conditions of these bonuses are. However, Forbes wrote that Triple H, who’s not only a part-time wrestler but also one of the company’s executives, got paid $1.6 million for his wrestling performances for a year, and $600,000 of that was from bonuses.
One of the ways that wrestlers can get a bonus is by promoting their events well. Again, since each contract is different, the numbers aren’t set in stone. With that said, Forbes reported that the WWE offered The Ultimate Warrior 5% of his events’ net ticket sales. Getting a piece of those ticket sales is something that happens in boxing, but doesn’t happen in the UFC.
This definitely happens with money from pay-per-view sales, too. In boxing and in the UFC, the most popular stars usually get a percentage of the pay-per-view sales. But of course, since things are different for each wrestler, it’s impossible to know who got how much when it comes to these sales.
For the biggest stars and the retired superstars, royalties represent a significant additional source of income. But once again, as Forbes reports, it varies a lot on a case by case basis, and the lesser-known stars won’t make much from these things.
The WWE typically pays about 25% of the net receipts in royalties to the wrestlers featured on merch. However, that’s only if one wrestler is featured on that merch. If there are multiple wrestlers, then that 25% is split evenly between them.
Endorsem*nts, however, are an easier way for wrestlers to get paid outside of the WWE. That said, since each wrestler and company is different, the value of endorsem*nt deals vary a lot.
How much the best WWE wrestlers can get paid
Just like in the UFC, the most popular athletes can negotiate for a bigger piece of the pie. This is what allows men and women like The Undertaker and Ronda Rousey to make millions each year. For example, Rousey got paid $1.5 million for her work. This is significantly more than what other women made with the WWE.
Booking contracts typically grant performers a base salary plus a share of other revenue streams like merchandise sales and gate receipts. Wrestlers on WWE's main roster make an average of $500,000 annually, while top performers are well into the seven figures.
While top professional wrestlers have earned millions from wrestling and movie appearances, most wrestlers earn significantly less. The average annual income for a professional wrestler was $51,537 as of 2021, according to the job site Simply Hired.
WWE counts 224 active wrestlers on its Superstars page, including members of its feeder league NXT. Even if we assume the average salary across the board is $500,000, that comes out to $112 million in salaries — or eight percent of the company's annual revenue.
WWE wrestlers' salaries start from $250,000 per year and range up to $10 million per year. NXT Salaries range from $50,000 to $200,000, with top talents making at least $100,000 per year.
9 Wrestlers Are Responsible For Their Own Ground Travel
The wrestlers and other employees need to take care of certain things themselves while on the road. One of those things happens to be ground travel. WWE doesn't rent a wrestler a car nor do they provide a tour bus - something they used to do back in the day.
The average WWE salary in the United States is $51,112 per year. WWE salaries range between $24,000 a year in the bottom 10th percentile to $104,000 in the top 90th percentile. WWE pays $24.57 an hour on average.
Most of the WWE revenue still comes from media rights, with live events contributing $23.8 million during the latest quarter, up from a year-earlier $20.1 million, while consumer products came to $21.8 million, down from a year-earlier $32.6 million.
Wrestlers tear up their knees, need stitches to close up gashes, break bones and drive their bodies into the ground. As much as opponents look to protect each other and control the violence in the ring, the physical toll of the art is inescapable.
Per Essentially Sports, Reigns has a salary of $5 million annually with WWE. Sports Brief has him as the third-highest WWE star to reach that mark in salary (first in active stars), with John Cena ($8.5 million) and Brock Lesnar ($12 million), part-timers, in front of him.
WWE wrestlers are working people like other people that report for work. Their job may be out of the mainstream choices for work, but any income earned is taxable. Actors, pro-sports players, astronauts . . . all unusual jobs for the average person, but all income earned is taxable.
Television Deals. This is the main source of income for WWE every year and the last TV rights were sold to 2 different networks with USA network getting Raw for $1 Billion for 5 years and Fox Sports got SmackDown at $1 billion for 5 years. ...
So over three years, Lesnar would earn an estimated $15 million in base pay. (I assume he'll receive some additional money from merchandise sales.) In rough terms, his per-match fee has been approximately $1.7 million. So time to tackle the question at hand: Is Lesnar really worth it?
Ronda Rousey's WWE salary is $1.5 million, with an additional $2.1 million assessed with rewards and product deals. On the other hand, her earnings in Strikeforce/UFC are a bit trickier to compute since every fight is different.
Consequently, according to his WWE contract in 2013, The Rock has an annual salary of $5 million, which is equivalent to Roman Reigns' current salary. However, if the Brahma Bull makes a return to the company in the future, a possible raise in amount can be expected.
According to sources, the highest WWE salary for a WWE main roster superstar is 12 Million and belongs to the Current WWE Universal Champion, Brock Lesnar. The lowest salary, on the other hand, is 250,000.
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Introduction: My name is Maia Crooks Jr, I am a homely, joyous, shiny, successful, hilarious, thoughtful, joyous person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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