A long-time pro wrestling/sports entertainment associate, Ross understands the business.

“I think the average fan doesn’t realize how many people from out of their region travel to a WrestleMania,” Ross said. “A WrestleMania to our genre is no different than a Super Bowl is to an NFL fan. A WrestleMania exceeds a Game 7 in the NBA because the NBA doesn’t play in stadiums as a rule.

“WrestleMania as a destination, there’s always 25 to 30 countries represented, fans who buy tickets and travel. So the airline impact is good. They got to stay somewhere. They got to eat. They got to have transportation, and they shop. It’s a great multi-pronged economic boost because of so many people traveling.

“Those who don’t come to the event [WrestleMania] who are local, they go to Axxess, our version of a fanfest. I think it’s wonderful, and I think it’s going to continue to grow because our footprint and the strength of our television partners internationally continues to grow. The more eyeballs that see what we do. The more people who get emotionally invested in WrestleMania, the more they will come to the event.

“Miami was a great host. The city fathers were excellent. They made everybody feel welcome. They went out of their way to accommodate a lot of unique needs, travel wise, logistically, things of that nature. The weather was great. So I was very pleased when I saw that number [record WrestleMania Week economic impact]. It was outstanding. The people it touched -- a lot of folks don’t understand -- was the additional security people, additional hotel staff, restaurant staffing, and then all their vendors who provide them their products to sell. It’s a trickle down that goes very deep.”

• About Enigma Research Corporation:

Enigma Research Corporation is an international consulting firm which specializes in measuring the economic impact of special events. Enigma’s economists developed a customized model which converted expenditures into economic impact, employment created and taxes generated as a result of the event.

“Enigma has established through a long history of service nationally and internationally that they are certainly a subject matter expert within this field,” Saboor said. “We believe it’s important and appropriate to have a third party conduct a study to determine economic impact results. We think that economic study has to be conducted by experts, and Enigma has established itself within this industry as being very well regarded.

“Many event owners and organizers, cities and local organizing committees engage third party research firms as a very important industry practice. We think it’s not only important to understand the impact that WrestleMania Week creates for a host community, but we think it’s also important for those who would think about submitting future proposals to host.”

• About WWE:

WWE, a publicly traded company (NYSE: WWE), is an integrated media organization and recognized leader in global entertainment. The company consists of a portfolio of businesses that create and deliver original content 52 weeks a year to a global audience. WWE is committed to family-friendly entertainment on its television programming, pay-per-view, digital media and publishing platforms. WWE programming is broadcast in more than 145 countries and 30 languages and reaches more than 600 million homes worldwide. The company is headquartered in Stamford, Conn., with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Miami, London, Mumbai, Shanghai, Singapore, Istanbul and Tokyo.

Additional information on WWE (NYSE: WWE) can be found at www.wwe.com and www.corporate.wwe.com. For information on its global activities, go to http://www.wwe.com/worldwide/.

• WWE Monday Night Raw, a three-hour live show, is 8 p.m. EST on the USA Network.