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If there was any doubt about whether WWE might experience some financial consequences from the disturbing allegations in the Vince McMahon sex trafficking lawsuit filed this week, the answer is now a definitive “yes.”
WrestleVotes first reported earlier today on “rumblings” that Slim Jim was going to pull its sponsorship of this weekend’s Royal Rumble.
Hearing rumblings that Slim Jim has notified WWE they are pulling their sponsorships from tomorrow’s Royal Rumble event. It is yet to be determined if they will remain partners in the future.
— WrestleVotes (@WrestleVotes) January 26, 2024
A spokesperson for Slim Jim confirmed that move to John Pollock of POST Wrestling, saying the company would “pause our promotional activities with WWE” as a direct result of the latest allegations against McMahon.
Slim Jim’s statement added that it would “monitor the situation and base our future engagements on our values and what’s best for our brand.”
Statement from Slim Jim to @POSTwrestling
"Slim Jim values integrity and respect in all of our partnerships. Given the recent disturbing allegations against Vince McMahon, at this time we've decided to pause our promotional activities with WWE…
1/3
— John Pollock (@iamjohnpollock) January 26, 2024
"…This decision reflects our commitment to our brand values and responsibility to our community.
We will continue to monitor the situation and base our future engagements on our values and what’s best for our brand".
2/3
— John Pollock (@iamjohnpollock) January 26, 2024
Though Slim Jim’s ties to WWE go back decades, it became an even bigger sponsor and partner of the company within the last six months. On Aug. 3, 2023, the two companies announced a “multi-layered partnership” that kicked off with its heavy integration into SummerSlam in Detroit, where a match called “The SummerSlam Battle Royal Presented by Slim Jim.”
That deal, which Sports Business Journal reported as the biggest of its kind for WWE at the time, also called for Slim Jim to be involved this year at Royal Rumble and WrestleMania 40.
The obvious questions now are whether other sponsors will follow suit, and how much pressure actions like this will put on the TKO board to discipline or explore removing McMahon from his position as executive chairman of the company’s board. So far, TKO’s only action has been a brief statement to Variety acknowledging the severity of the accusations against McMahon and stating that “we take Ms. Grant’s horrific allegations very seriously and are addressing this matter internally.”