Ryback Knows Why WWE’s Ratings are Slumping

It’s been well documented how far WWE‘s ratings have slipped as of late. Since WrestleMania, WWE’s flagship has consistently been hitting near historical lows. While WWE doesn’t seem to be panicking, it’s certainly a topic that has been well covered by fans and ex-wrestlers alike.

Former WWE Superstar Ryback has officially joined the conversation. On an episode of his podcast, Conversation with the Big Guy, Ryback has a few guesses as to why WWE is struggling to maintain a healthy viewership.

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“The audience is different today as far as viewing habits because you’ve got to understand that compared to 15 years ago, there [are] a lot more options on TV and with cell phones. And people, everybody has ADD now with cell phones, and just constantly, the attention spans are shorter, and social media… everything’s completely different.”

Ryback would expand by speculating on how WWE feels internally about the rating slump.

“You’ve got to understand, they’ve seemed to make money in so many different avenues with the business and the brand that maybe they don’t have to put as much stock into the ratings, which they always should. As far as, obviously, they would be happier if the ratings were higher, right, because we’ve seen when the ratings do good numbers, they boast about it and whatnot?…It [has] been the same for a while now, but they could always [improve]. I’m sure they’ll improve and whatnot, but it’s definitely something that definitely raised a few eye[brows] around there, I would imagine.”

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WWE made nearly $800 million last year, so to think they are truly upset about a few months of low ratings just doesn’t seem credible. However, we can assume it’s something they are at least aware of.

If anything, the fans and their lack of tuning in is a great way to communicate to WWE that its product can be better. When there’s a qualitative disconnect like this, it’s hard to imagine WWE not acknowledging and correcting the situation.

To their credit, WWE has picked it up the last few weeks. Ratings have responded and WWE will look to continue build momentum as they charge to SummerSlam.