It’s absolutely no secret that WWE is big business right now as wrestling fans enjoy another boom period.
While generationally professional wrestling has been a fairly niche interest, it has enjoyed numerous spells basking in the glorious sunshine that is the mainstream.
Hulk Hogan, Mr T and Muhammad Ali helped spearhead WWE into global stardom around the time of the maiden WrestleMania in the 1980s, the company’s biggest annual event regularly attracting big hitters from Hollywood and beyond.
The Attitude Era and Stone Cold Steve Austin, with the help of Mike Tyson, Vince McMahon and others helped propel WWE back into the mainstream and, in 2025, there’s an argument to say wrestling is well and truly there once again, and may be there to stay.
WWE launched a humungous $5bn deal with streaming giant Netflix earlier this year on the back of a run of stunningly successful live events across the US, Europe, Australia and Saudi Arabia to list just a few.
Ticket prices are high, too, meaning the global sell-out crowds are making big bucks for WWE – as is the accompanying merchandise, sponsorship and social media success.
A result of all of that, of course, is that WWE’s top names are raking it in, a recent report noting that the minimum pay for a WWE talent on the main roster is in the range of $200,000 to $300,000.
Top talent, according to Fightful, are earning ‘millions’ each year, so it’s hardly a surprise to consider that, despite being in the midst of a farewell tour and having not wrestled on a full-time basis for many years, John Cena’s net worth is eye-watering.
Celebrity Net Worth rates the wrestler turned actor’s worth at a staggering $80 million (£61 million).
The bulk of his income from more recent years is likely to come from his Hollywood movies but, even while he was dipping his toe in movie waters and wrestling at the same time, he pocketed a cool $280,000 for starring in The Marine in 2006.
Fast-forward to 2024, and Forbes had Cena as still raking in $23 million for the year from his movies.
The site also notes that Cena is land wealthy, too, his private home in Florida costing him $525,000 in 2005 but now being worth a whopping $4 million.
As well as earning big time bucks, the Massachusetts native has known to be generous with both his time and money, having granted 650 for sick children through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and donated $1 million to Black Lives Matter as part of the #MatchAMillion Campaign.
If you thought Cena’s work and earnings put him on a whole new level financially, even the part-time grappler’s net worth is dwarfed by that of the man effectively in charge of him – Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque.
A former Cena rival and a Hall of Fame wrestler in his own right, Triple H has transitioned from the ring into a backstage role and heads up all of what WWE fans see on screen as the company’s Head of Creative and Chief Content Officer.
The powerful role, combined career at the top level of the industry, amount to a net worth listed as an unimaginable $250 million ($193 million).
Such a staggering figure, the site reports, is a combined net worth alongside wife, Stephanie McMahon, herself a former WWE wrestler and executive.
In 2013 Triple H’s earnings were listed at $1.5 million for the combination of his limited wrestling work and executive duties, while his high-powered off-camera role is now said to be worth a not-too-shabby $2.8 million.
Cena’s future workload and earnings will still be dominated by his work outside the wrestling ring following his impending retirement, and Triple H, too, will stay in an off-screen role having vowed never to wrestle again following an incredible brush with death that brought his active in-ring days to a screeching halt.
Beset by viral pneumonia, he was miraculously able to recover but later said: “As far as in-ring, I’m done. I will never wrestle again.
“I have a defibrillator in my chest, which it’s not a good idea for me zapped on live TV.”
Undoubtedly two icons of the wrestling world John Cena and Triple H have entertained fans around the globe for decades – and have been paid very well to do so!
How to get tickets for the WWE shows in London and Glasgow
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Wrestling fans in the UK don’t get to see their idols live very often, as most events are based out in the US.
But this month the chance to see Raw and Smackdown is right around the corner as stars such as The Rock and John Cena will be hitting London’s O2 Arena and Glasgow’s OVO Hydro.
To get tickets to see these shows in the build up to Wrestlemania, follow the links below.
WWE Raw tickets (OVO Hydro Glasgow, 24 March)
- WWE Raw Glasgow tickets at Ticketmaster, from £229.70 – buy here
- WWE Raw Glasgow tickets at StubHub from £396 – buy here
- WWE Raw Glasgow tickets at Viagogo, from £372 – buy here
WWE Smackdown tickets (O2 Arena London, 28 March)
- WWE Friday Night Smackdown London tickets at Ticketmaster, from £340.50 – buy here
- WWE Friday Night Smackdown London tickets at StubHub, from £151 – buy here
- WWE Friday Night Smackdown London tickets at Viagogo, from £144 – buy here
WWE Raw tickets (O2 Arena London, 31 March)
