Why Saudi Arabia Actually Wanted A Deal With WWE

WWE ran plenty of propaganda during the Greatest Royal Rumble event in Saudi Arabia. John Cena even cut a speech thanking KSA for being so great which was later lambasted on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver.

WWE didn’t run the same propaganda segments during WWE Crown Jewel due to the heightened controversy. However, it was noted on Wrestling Observer Radio that a concession was likely made in order for WWE not to run this type of material.

Dave Meltzer continued to explain that the real reason WWE is in such demand for Saudi Arabia is the public relations boost they want to give their country.

“Okay so here’s the thing, the reason they’re getting paid so much is not because they want WWE in the country. The reason they’re getting paid so much is because they want WWE to broadcast how great Saudi Arabia is to the world.”

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“They did do those [propaganda commercials for the GRR], but for the second show they didn’t do any of that which I think was probably a compromise because they couldn’t do it — if WWE did it then they would probably lose a lot of sponsors if they had actually put over Saudi Arabia.”

The amount of WWE Network subscribers that canceled their subscriptions after the WWE Crown Jewel event was really a drop in the bucket. Of course, WWE would love to have that money back, but it is not worth losing their decade-long deal with KSA.

If you use the quotes in this article credit Ringside News