Speaking on the conference call with investors following the Q1 2026 financial results, TKO Chief Operating Officer and President Mark Shapiro acknowledged that there were investor questions on the WWE ticket prices and creative, driven particularly by the “online commentary” of the WrestleMania ticket sales performance.

“Let me say that we are not concerned about the ticket performance whatsoever as it was unrealistic to expect year two growth in Las Vegas,” Shapiro said. “And even with that, WrestleMania 42 was still one of the highest gates in WWE history and easily outperformed anywhere else we could have staged it.”

WWE President Nick Khan said in a past interview that looking back, it was probably not the best idea to host the show in Las Vegas again but the show still drew one of the largest gates in pro wrestling history.

Shapiro also addressed the dissatisfaction online regarding WWE’s creative direction and the incredible amount of advertising during shows.

“There will always be periodic fan dissatisfaction around creative execution, commercial load and celebrity usage,” Shapiro continued. “We listen to all the feedback. We do not turn a deaf ear, but these are not new criticisms.”

Asked regarding the ever-increasing prices of tickets, Shapiro said that it’s not easy to balance the fan experience with the business of sports, be it ticket prices or commercial integration.

“It’s as old as time. And frankly, it crosses genres, right? It’s no different than Hollywood when you go to the movie theater and you see the prices rising for admission and popcorn and candy, not to mention the 30 minutes of commercials and trailers prior to the film that’s been also excessively talked about,” Shapiro fired back.

Shapiro also noted the amount of corporate sponsors leagues such as the NBA and MLB have, with sponsors on jerseys, digital boards at games, sponsors on courts, and naming rights to stadiums, as well as commercial breaks in the Final 4, NFL, and other major sporting events.

“The WWE, in particular, is truly new to commercial integration and sponsorship and change will be more glaring for some as we inevitably commercially integrate,” Shapiro continued. “There’s really no magic formula, there’s no serum for this. There’s going to be some trial and error over time. We have experimented. We pushed some boundaries with various events, we’ve leaned in with others, we’ve pulled back.”