WWE finally reveals eye-watering 8-figure deal with another wrestling promotion
WWE has finally revealed shocking details from a recent deal made with another popular pro wrestling organization. The settlement details could be seen as a big hit to the Stamford-based promotion and parent company, TKO Group Holdings.
MLW filed a federal anti-trust lawsuit against WWE in January 2022, accusing them of contract tampering and interfering with business relationships. The two parties decided to settle the lawsuit in December 2023, but financial details were not disclosed then.
TKO filed their Financial Results for the year 2023 this week and the report included details on the settlement between World Wrestling Entertainment and Major League Wrestling. The report revealed that the sports entertainment juggernaut agreed to pay $20 million to Court Bauer's promotion.
"For the twelve-month period ended December 31, 2023, the Company’s consolidated pre-tax results included $34.2 million in costs related to certain litigation matters at UFC and WWE, including the impact of a $20.0 million charge related to the settlement of an antitrust lawsuit at WWE. A reconciliation of Net Income to Adjusted EBITDA for the three and twelve-month periods ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 can be found in the supplemental schedule on page 14 of this release," the report stated.
A new SEC filing from TKO also confirmed the settlement details. The filing explicitly stated that the $20 million was for MLW, and that the case was dismissed on December 26.
"On January 11, 2022, a complaint was filed against WWE by MLW Media LLC ('MLW'), captioned MLW Media LLC v. World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., No. 5:22-cv-00179-EJD (N.D. Cal.), alleging that WWE interfered with MLW’s contractual relationship with certain media platforms and engaged in other anticompetitive and unfair business practices in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act and California law. On December 22, 2023, the parties notified the court that they had entered into a settlement agreement in the amount of $20.0 million and stipulated that the case should be voluntarily dismissed with prejudice. In light of the settlement, the case was dismissed with prejudice on December 26, 2023," the form stated.
Bauer, a former WWE creative writer, first launched MLW in 2002. They ran live events and TV tapings until 2004, then returned to full-time promoting in July 2017, and resumed weekly TV programming in April 2018.
Who are the stars of promotion that filed lawsuit against WWE?
Major League Wrestling is currently ran by founder and former WWE creative writer Court Bauer.
MLW was founded in Philadelphia back in 2002. After running events with a 'Hybrid Wrestling' style, the promotion was put on hold until 2017. They currently run TV tapings, pay-per-view events, and other shows, and have partnerships with brands like Vice and Triller TV.
The current MLW World Heavyweight Champion is Satoshi Kojima. Rickey Shane Page is the MLW National Openweight Champion, and Rocky Romero is the MLW World Middleweight Champion.
The MLW women's division includes World Women's Featherweight Champion Janai Kai. The tag team division features MLW World Tag Team Champions Matthew Justice and 1 Called Manders of The Second Gear Crew.
The next MLW event will be Intimidation Games 2024, scheduled for Thursday, February 29 at the Melrose Ballroom in Queens, NYC. It will stream live on Triller and some matches will be taped for the Once Upon A Time In New York special, which will air on BeIN Sports and YouTube on March 14.
What would be your WWE vs. MLW dream matches? Sound off in the comments section below.