Earlier this year, the sluggish Wrestlemania ticket sales were a major narrative around the biggest show on the WWE calendar, so much so that it was used as a storyline for the event, with the disastrous Pat McAfee involvement. The former NFL kicker and current ESPN talk show host only did what he was asked to do, but the angle were such drek that after it's conclusion, McAfee publicly announced that he was finished up with his work in sports entertainment.
When it was announced last year that Summer Slam was going to be expanded to a two-night format, I was skeptical that the event, despite its historical cache, would have enough steam to draw two nights in a row. I don't think it's anything groundbreaking to point out that trying to double the amount of tickets sold and thus double the live gate is a very tough task for the company. They are essentially asking the audience to spent twice as much cash on the Summer Slam experience. Yes, I understand that it includes two shows, but the bottom line is, the consumer is going to have to spend double the amount of money. I've also written in recent months that every peak has a valley, and it's simply not possible to maintain the peak that the WWE was at a few years ago when Cody Rhodes finally won the WWE championship after a two-year chase to the belt.
As far as a good business strategy, finding a way to minimize the valleys is key. Not only has TKO not looked for a way to do that, it's almost as if they have snubbed their nose at fan feedback, keeping ticket prices expensive.
As a result, just two weeks before Summer Slam, Wrestle Tix reported that ticket sales are soft again, especially compared to the same event last year. US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis has a flexible capacity of anywhere between 66,000 seats that can be expanded to 73,000 seats, depending on the set up. Right now, the ticket map for Summer Slam lists a set up of just under 30,000 seats, implying that large sections of the building could be tarpped off by show time. According to Wrestle Tix, 22,000 tickets and 23,000 tickets have been sold for Saturday and Sunday respectively. It's important to keep in mind that the set up of 30,000 tickets could be expanded if there was the demand for more tickets. Comparatively, Summer Slam at Metlife Stadium last year sold a reported 53,000 and 60,000 tickets respectively.
As of right now, the amount of ticket sold is roughly half compared to last year, and a third of the house could be empty in Minnesota. Obviously, this prompts the questions as to why, for the second time in the span of a few months, a WWE marquee event has soft ticket sales?
Usually, the simplest answer is the right answer. Yes, the ticket prices are simply too expensive for the average consumer, and there's only a limited amount of fans from the most diehard demographic that are going to spend that type of cash on live event tickets. But, there are also layers to the scenario that reveal just how much TKO brass might've missed the mark on Summer Slam as a top draw at this point in the year.
There was criticism of hosting Wrestlemania in Las Vegas two years in a row because it took away some of the tourist aspect for wrestling fans. They would've already had the chance to see the city the previous year, and there's just not the same selling point when travelers can't maximize the location, especially with the total costs of everything when someone travels to a WWE pay-per-view. Minneapolis isn't exactly known for its tourist industry or being a destination city. Furthermore, the ongoing conflict with Iran will continue to keep oil prices high and thus the costs of travel across the board will be more expensive. It can't be understated how much an uncertain economy can impact the amount of disposable income that consumers might have at any given time. The bottom line is that the domino effect of an increase in energy costs can directly and indirectly affect almost every aspect of the economy. When costs increase, companies will ultimately look to cut back to cover the difference and it's possible that there are staff cuts as a part of that process. When the average consumer loses their job because of the economy crunch, traveling to a WWE pay-per-view isn't a priority. More specifically, just the uncertainly of job security when the economy is shaky is enough for fans to opt not to spend the extra cash in favor of essential purchases. Groceries, gas, and electricity are usually more important, even to dedicated wrestling fans than an expensive ticket and a pay-per-view chair.
The economic concerns play a much bigger role than the product, but that being said, the build for Summer Slam hasn't exactly made it a "must see"event for the audience. The reason being, while the top bouts are strong, two weeks away from the PPV and a full card hasn't been announced, which means that there will ultimately be matches that are rather indifference thrown onto the line-up. I think it goes without saying that Cody Rhodes vs. CM Punk is a feud that has a lot of meat on the bone and should continue beyond Summer Slam. As much as the HIAC stipulation adds something new to it, I'm not sure the same can be said about the Oba Femi vs. Brock Lesnar match. Yes, I understand that its an anticipated bout, but the way the match was booked at WM worked so well that anything after it has seemed somewhat lackluster in comparison. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure Lesnar and Femi will deliver a great performance, but the Lesnar "retirement" that wasn't a retirement muddied the waters. In fact, it was reported earlier this year that Summer Slam would be the place for Lesnar's retirement since it's going to be in Minnesota, which could've been used as a major selling point, but even if this ends up being his final match, it has zero cache with the audience because they have no reason to believe that he will actually retire since he already left his boots in the ring at WM. I know some might consider Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins a draw, but the entire Shield angle was recycled too many times and seemed like a retread more than anything else.
Still, the fact is, a measurable number of fans that were willing to buy tickets for Summer Slam last year simply aren't going to do the same this year. Of course, the peak of the current era was Cody winning the championship a few years ago and there will be a natural decline from it, but the biggest issue is the way that TKO hasn't adjusted accordingly. That's the biggest takeaway from this story, and it's somewhat of a follow-up to the previously mentioned Wrestlemania narrative, TKO reached the tipping point in terms of when they priced out a portion of their audience. As I'd written before, it's possible that TKO is trying to squeeze as much cash out of the current fan base as possible to be able to inflate the value of the organization to sell it, potentially to the Saudis, but regardless of the future plans, the numbers reflect that the corporation has eroded at least some demographic of the paying audience. The proof of that is that Summer Slam has been held in a stadium exclusively for the past several years, but the number of tickets sold this year make it more suitable for a traditional arena.
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