More Details On WWE/Amway Center, Including Cost

Call it a steal. This Friday, WWE will make its debut in the Amway Center for SmackDown, though the show will be a little different than the times it has taken place there before. This time around the show will be known as the ThunderDome, which will offer what is being described as a completely unique viewing experience. At the end of the day though, it is still a regular arena and WWE will be there for the time being. Now we know a little more about the situation.

Thanks to the Coronavirus, WWE has been stuck in the Performance Center in Orlando, Florida for all of its television tapings since all the way back in March. That is the kind of issue that can cause a lot of issues for the company, as there is little reason to see the show as a huge deal when it is being held in a small building. The move to the Amway Center is a big upgrade, but how much is it setting WWE back?

Jon Alba of MyNews13 of Orlando, Florida reports that WWE will be paying about $450,000 to the Amway Center for their contract. On Monday, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer was asked about the agreement, which would run for the next sixty days. When asked, Dyer would not answer a question about possibly extending the deal. Dyer did mention that there would be no fans in the arena but the Amway Center staff will be working throughout the sixty days.

More news: My @MyNews13 colleague @News13JeffAllen says City of Orlando officials tell him Amway Center will be making about $450,000 off #WWE's residency.

Given WWE has been off the road for most of the year, that's a bargain for the company, and good money for venue.

— Jon Alba (@JonAlba) August 17, 2020

Dyer had some things to say. Check out what he said at his press conference:

Opinion: That sounds pretty good for WWE. They bragged about all of the millions and millions of dollars that they had to survive the pandemic and being able to get a rather nice facility for the next two months for less than half a million dollars isn’t too bad. On top of that, it’s nice to see the staff of the building getting a paycheck for the next two months as well, not to mention all of the time that will be included in setting the place up for WWE to arrive. Good for everyone involved, which hopefully includes the fans.

What do you think of the move? What are you expecting from ThunderDome? Let us know in the comments below.

Thomas Hall has been a wrestling fan for over thirty years and has seen over 50,000 wrestling matches. He has also been a wrestling reviewer since 2009 with over 5,000 full shows covered. You can find his work at kbwrestlingreviews.com, or check out his- Amazon author page with 30 wrestling books. Get the latest and greatest in professional wrestling news by signing up for our daily email newsletter. Just look below for “GET EXCLUSIVE UPDATES” to sign up. Thank you for reading!