How much are WWE stars paid for WrestleMania?

WWE’s biggest show of the year is edging closer, with The Rock, John Cena and CM Punk due to be involved in various ways

WrestleMania 41, the latest edition of WWE’s biggest event of the year, is finally here.

This weekend, the two-piece showcase will head to Las Vegas’s Allegiant Stadium, as John Cena and Cody Rhodes headline one of the evenings, with more top names since confirmed – including CM Punk and Roman Reigns, with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson potentially joining.

• WrestleMania 41 LIVE: Follow the build-up, updates and results from Las Vegas

Such a seismic event, which may have its greatest-ever reach this year due to a new Netflix deal, means big money for professional-wrestling’s flagship company. And big money for the performers, no doubt, but just how much will WWE stars earn?

Below, we take a look at the kind of money that the athletes may make at WrestleMania 41.

Here’s all you need to know.

When is WrestleMania 41 and how can I watch it?

WrestleMania became a two-night event in 2020, and this year it will take place on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 April at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. In the US, each evening of action will begin at 4pm PT / 6pm CT / 7pm ET. In the UK, that works out to 12am BST on Sunday and Monday morning.

WrestleMania 41 will stream live on Netflix in the UK and most territories worldwide, as part of subscribers’ existing plans (at no additional cost, in other words). In the US, however, the event will air live on Peacock pay-per-view.

In January, all of WWE’s shows began streaming live on Netflix in the UK and most territories worldwide; in the US, every show except SmackDown (which remains on the USA Network) also airs on Netflix.

How much do WWE stars earn?

Roman Reigns is one of WWE’s biggest stars (WWE)

The specifics of WWE contracts have long been hard to ascertain. However, WWE star-turned-executive Triple H (real name Paul Levesque) told The Athletic in 2022 that $250,000 is the minimum base salary for wrestlers in the company. That figure might have risen since, of course, and it reportedly only applied to members of the Smackdown and Raw rosters – not wrestlers on NXT, which is WWE’s developmental show.

However, wrestlers’ wages are boosted by merchandise sales and, it is believed, by cuts of pay-per-view sales as well. Of course, merchandise sales are likely to be significant on a WrestleMania weekend, as well as pay-per-view sales, so 19 and 20 April could be the most lucrative days of the year for most WWE wrestlers.

In 2023, The Mirror reported some of the highest WWE wages as these: Roman Reigns $5m per year; Randy Orton $5m per year; Seth Rollins $3.5m per year; Cody Rhodes $3m per year; Logan Paul $2m per year. These figures reportedly don’t include bonuses.

Confirmed matches

Cody Rhodes is the Undisputed WWE Champion and one of the company’s biggest stars (Getty)

Night 1

War Raiders (World Tag-Team Champions) vs The New Day

Rey Mysterio vs El Grande Americano

Jade Cargill vs Naomi

LA Knight (United States Champion) vs Jacob Fatu

Tiffany Stratton (Women’s WWE Champion) vs Charlotte

Gunther (World Heavyweight Champion) vs Jey Uso

CM Punk vs Roman Reigns vs Seth Rollins

Night 2

Liv Morgan and Raquel Rodriguez (WWE Women’s Tag-Team Champions) vs Bayley and Valkyria

Logan Paul vs AJ Styles

Randy Orton vs TBA

Bron Breakker (Intercontinental Champion) vs Penta vs Dominik Mysterio vs Finn Balor

Drew McIntyre vs Damian Priest (‘Sin City Street Fight’)

Iyo Sky (Women’s World Champion) vs Bianca Belair vs Rhea Ripley

Cody Rhodes (Undisputed WWE Champion) vs John Cena

Will The Rock compete?

The Rock in the build-up to WrestleMania 41 (WWE)

Last year, The Rock competed in the Night 1 main event of WrestleMania 40, teaming with Roman Reigns to beat Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins. He also interfered in the Night 2 main event: Reigns vs Rhodes. He is not advertised as competing this year, but expect him to feature in some capacity.

Why is John Cena a ‘bad guy’?

Last year, Cena was a ‘good guy’ and briefly faced off with The Rock (Getty)

In pro wrestling, ‘good’ characters are called ‘babyfaces’ and ‘bad’ characters are ‘heels’. Cena spent most of his career as a babyface, having last been a heel in the early-mid 2000s – until February’s Elimination Chamber event, where he attacked Rhodes and joined forces with The Rock. This is part of a storyline in which Cena, during his final year as a pro wrestler, is desperate to win a record-breaking 17th world championship. Rhodes is WWE’s biggest babyface, while The Rock is a heel authority figure, given Dwayne Johnson’s real-life position on the board of TKO (WWE’s ownership group).