WWE history: Donald Trump gives fans in attendance of RAW their money back after the show
The backstory
Back in 2009, before he became the 45th President of the United States of America, Donald Trump was once the owner of WWE's flagship show, Monday Night Raw. Anything and everything could happen on Raw, and after the company revealed that someone new would take control of Raw from Vince McMahon, fans were excited to find out who it would be and they were not left disappointed.
The mystery buyer was revealed to be none other than the silk-stocking magnate Donald Trump, Mr. McMahon's old foe and real-life friend. Trump (kayfabe) purchased the show from McMahon and ran things in his way, much to the dismay of Vince.
Donald Trump announces a massive main event and gives fans in attendance a refund
The episode of Raw under Trumps' control took place on 22 June 2009, and was known as 'Trump Raw.' Trump opened the show by speaking to the fans and announced that in addition to Raw being commercial-free, The Viper Randy Orton would defend his WWE Championship in a Last Man Standing match against Triple H. Trump also revealed that after the show, all the fans in attendance would receive a full refund. The fans were obviously delighted and they showed it with a standing ovation.
However, the celebration didn't last long, as the chairman Vince McMahon, afraid that Trump would run WWE and him out of business, offered to buy Raw back from Trump for double the amount the very same night.
Trump agreed to sell Raw back to Vince and for double the price that he paid.
Even though Trump didn't actually purchase or sell Raw back to Vince McMahon, the fans in attendance legitimately got their money back. Trump kept his promise and the thousands of attendees reportedly received a full refund. This cost the company $235,000. Everything was already planned in advance and the refunds went off smoothly. WWE lost a lot of money that night; with Raw being commercial-free and fans receiving a full refund.
The aftermath
Vince took back control of Monday Night Raw and only one other time the company had a commercial-free episode of Raw, in 2010, which was unsuccessful. Donald Trump went on to become, and currently is, the President of USA.
Also Read: WWE history: Stone Cold Steve Austin gives the US President Donald Trump a stunner
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