The Visit St. Pete-Clearwater commission revealed to The Catalyst news website that they spent $500,000 to bring the Royal Rumble to Tropicana Field in January of next year.

Public Relations Director Jason Latimer said that all of the money came from its tourist development tax funding – accrued from overnight stays at county hotels – in its successful bid.

What’s interesting is that the Greater Orlando Sports Commission bid $850,000 to host the event at Camping World Stadium but the show still went to Tampa instead, perhaps with WWE showing its thanks for the stadium hosting the WWE ThunderDome during the pandemic era.

Pinellas County officials are expecting well over 40,000 people to the area with ticket buyers coming from all 50 states and 15 countries so far. The goal is to break the attendance record at Tropicana Field which stands at 47,150 in 1990.

Latimer also said that some Pinellas hotels are already nearing capacity for the Royal Rumble weekend.

LA Knight is currently the favorite to win the men’s Royal Rumble according to several betting insiders with FanDuel sportsbook and others offering odds. The Rock is second favorite while Gunther, who had a big showing this year, is third.

As for the women’s Royal Rumble, Nia Jax is currently the favorite for the spot, followed by Raquel Rodriguez, and Becky Lynch.