Vince McMahon Says Other States Would Welcome WWE as an Essential Business

Connor Casey

04/23/2020 05:55 pm EDT

Florida state officials ruled in mid-April that professional wrestling will be considered an essential business going forward, giving WWE an exemption from the state-wide "stay at home" order as long as the correct precautions are taken, social distancing is enforced and no crowds are in attendance. During Thursday's earnings conference call for financial investors, Vince McMahon was asked what would happen if Florida officials changed their minds and decided not to consider WWE "essential."

McMahon responded by saying several other states would be willing to open their doors if that happened.

"Yes we do. A number of them, a number of states would welcome us," McMahon said.

In the earning report, McMahon addressed what WWE had done so far in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

"Our first quarter financial performance was strong and largely unimpacted by the COVID-19 outbreak," McMahon said. "Now we are in the midst of unprecedented times, which require us to be especially nimble, creative and efficient in order to ensure the ling-term value of WWE. We are taking precautions to protect the health and safety of our performers and staff as we produce content in new ways, engage fans with a much-needed diversion and operate effectively in this evolving environment."

On April 15 WWE announced a series of cost-cutting measures to compensate for money lost during the coronavirus pandemic. That included either firing or furloughing numerous wrestlers, backstage producers, referees, announcers, on-air talent and office staff.

Here's a full list of every wrestler who has been released:

And here's the full list of every backstage producer/referee/writer who have either been released or furloughed:

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