Live Audio, Coverage Of WWE’s Q1 2020 Earnings Call
Welcome to our coverage of WWE’s Q1 earnings call. You can hear the full call above, and check out our coverage below
– Vince McMahon and Frank Riddick (interim CFO) are on the call.
– Vince McMahon says the current climate is a “challenging” environment, but one they have to take on and make special.
– Vince McMahon says even though it was out of the quarter, WrestleMania was off the charts for WWE. 967,000,000 video views across digital platforms for WrestleMania
– Vince McMahon touts the decreased operating expenses. He isn’t sure what the new normal is, but says they’re very flexible based on what government and fans want.
– Vince McMahon is asked why viewership is down despite being the only live sports on. He says they don’t have the benefit of a crowd, and are doing better than anyone could have imagined without one. He says they’ve added more verbalizing between the wrestlers.
– Vince admits Raw’s viewership has suffered, and says they’ve brought in a lot of new talent so it takes a while to establish them. Says “we no longer have Brock Lesnar, obviously.”
– Saudi Arabia would love to have a major event this year, but they aren’t sure if they’ll get the okay in November or December. He says they’ll tack that event on the back side of the contract. WWE won’t lose the money.
– Vince McMahon says they have a number of states that would welcome WWE as a backup plan if Florida disallowed it.
– Vince McMahon does not seem optimistic about the idea of live crowds any time soon. He’s clearly not putting any eggs into that basket.
– Frank Riddick says there isn’t a disinterest in WWE content from third parties, they’re dealing with their own problems with COVID-19 right now. It’s still a possibility. They’d also consider anything to optimize the value of the network. They were very close to a deal per Vince.
– Vince McMahon says neither they or their partners are doing as well as they’d like to be, but the TV partners understand and “lauded” what WWE is doing. Vince says USA and Fox have WWE’s back.
– Vince McMahon isn’t sure where the live event industry or business will be any time soon, or how/if that will resume. He says WWE is prepared if it is permitted.
– Vince McMahon will not commit to any return to live crowds even though they have holds on buildings. He’s being very realistic about this.
– Vince McMahon says there is an extensive screening and cleaning method. A Wild Triple H appears and says they’ve worked with Allied Bio Sciences with a solution that disinfects their surfaces.
