The Dark Side of WWE: Legal Battles

The wrestling world has been surrounded by legal trouble ever since Vince McMahon took over Titan Sports Inc. and gave birth to the WWF. It has now been more than four decades since the WWF was born, and the company has enjoyed various highs and lows during that period. However, one thing that has stayed consistent is their legal troubles.
Every so often, we see WWE make the headlines for being named in a lawsuit of some kind. These can be anything from minor copyright infringements to sex scandals. Today, we’ll be taking a look at the dark side of WWE as seen through their legal battles.
Here are a few trials that shed light on WWE’s Dark Side.
Back in 1993, Vince McMahon had to stand trial after he was accused of distributing and encouraging his wrestlers to use steroids, a big no-no in the eyes of Uncle Sam. This was a massive event and almost changed the course of the company forever. Before this trial, WWE’s wrestlers were treated as heroes who pushed their bodies to the limit to meet unreal expectations and body standards.

However, once the steroid allegations came to light, all their star power went out of the window, and they were labeled as frauds who took the easy way out. Public outrage over this might have been easy to handle if it wasn’t for Hulk Hogan. At this time, Hogan was America’s superhero, and many even said that the man bled red and blue.
So, when he testified that he had been taking steroids to achieve his outlandish appearance, it sparked a lot of outrage. McMahon also took a lot of fire around this time and temporarily ceded control of WWE to his wife, Linda McMahon. Vince McMahon’s team of lawyers never entered a defense. Yet somehow, McMahon still managed to get away with this with just a slap on the wrist. Fortunately, the same can’t be said for Dr. George Zahorian.
Vince McMahon has quite a history of sexual assault lawsuits, with the earliest dating back to 1992. The first one to accuse McMahon was Rita Chatterton, who claimed that McMahon r*ped her after she refused to give him oral s*x in a car. After decades of fighting, Chatterton was finally able to get a multimillion-dollar legal settlement for her troubles.

That's not all, as WWE decided to investigate McMahon in April 2022. During their investigation, they found that McMahon and John Laurinaitis, who was an executive, had made several women sign NDAs pertaining to sexual misconduct. Moreover, it was revealed that McMahon and John had paid out a total of $12 million in Hush money payments to keep all of this away from the public eye.
The final nail in the coffin for McMahon was when Janel Grant filed a lawsuit against him in 2024. The lawsuit in question accused McMahon of sexually assaulting and trafficking Grant.
As a result, McMahon was completely cut out of the WWE and now waits to stand trial.
WWE has always received a lot of flak for its relationship with Saudi Arabia. People allege that WWE's collaborations with Saudi Arabia have enabled them to sportwash all their sins away. This partnership has even resulted in legal troubles for WWE as a retirement fund for firefighters sued them back in 2020.

The lawsuit insinuated that the Saudi Arabian government had failed to pay WWE somewhere between $60 million and $500 million for broadcasting rights. This was something that WWE failed to report and so were liable for damages. Even today, WWE is heavily criticized and blamed for Saudi Arabia's discrimination against the LGBTQ community and women.
Also Read: From Pillman's Got a Gun to Owen Hart's death: Scandals That Shook WWE
People believe that WWE's collaborations with the Saudi state contribute to the hate they have towards the LGBTQ and women. As a result, several politicians and activist groups spoke out about their discomfort with the situation and condemned WWE. Furthermore, many fans have filed petitions against WWE in Saudi Arabia and have voiced their concerns at different events across the nation.
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