The 12 Richest WWE Wrestling Stars 2023

These 12 Richest WWE Wrestling Stars 2023

While the fascination with wrestling is finding more and more fans in Germany and is experiencing constant growth, the sport is already an extraordinarily broad-based and widely respected phenomenon in the United States. The WWE is currently the largest wrestling organization, and the market share of competing models is so small that it can be described as an economic monopoly.

List of 12 richest wrestling stars in the world!

12. “The Undertaker” Mark Calaway (net worth: 15.5 million euros)

Mark Calaway is one of the longest-serving performers in the scene (since 1990!). If you’re wondering how the athlete’s name (“the undertaker”) came about, here’s a quick explanation: In the late 1980s to around the mid-1990s, it was common to choose job titles as names, jobs that had a scary or fear-inducing image. So any wrestling star who was anyone called himself either “the dentist!” or “the butcher!” or “the undertaker!” These days, you don’t see the 50-year-old wrestling very often; he stays more in the background and promotes his name. But when he does appear in public, his performances are as spectacular as ever.

11. Shawn Michaels “HBK” (net worth: 14.5 million euros)

Shawn Michael’s real birth name is actually “Michael Shawn Hickenbottom” – on the advice of his agent, he changed his name at an unspecified point in his career so that the word would sound more like a wrestling star. Shawn is a living legend. He entered the ring in 1987 (only 21 years old at the time!) and joined the “Rockers Tag Team” as a much-celebrated newcomer, alongside Marty Jannetty. In the years that followed, the superstar also worked as a businessman alongside his career as a wrestler. He markets his own name extremely successfully and lands advertising contracts himself. A real universal genius, in the truest sense of the word.

10. Mick Foley (net worth: 15 million euros)

If you were to make a list of wrestling stars who have been most damaged by their careers, Mick Foley would probably be at the top! His fights are a guarantee for all kinds of injuries and have already become his trademark.

Foley’s interest in wrestling developed during his school days, when he gained experience as an amateur wrestler (funnily enough, with actor Kevin James), after which he decided to become a professional. He and his friends started what he called “backyard wrestling”; Foley and his friends would recreate their idols in the backyards of their houses, thus embodying a self-organized role play! Foley now works as a stand-up comedy artist and also as a children’s book author (yes, you read that right. Further proof that you can’t judge people based on their appearance).

9. Chris Jericho (net worth: 15 million euros)

Chris Jericho suffered the same fate as many of his colleagues: he too had to change his name on the advice of his agent; Chris was actually born as “Chris Irvine”. He is also the only wrestler on this list who comes from Canada, or more precisely, the snow-white north of Canada. It is extremely difficult for Canadian wrestlers to build a life in the American industry, mainly because of the extremely Canada-shy casting agencies. Chris Jericho rose to fame as a highly respected athlete, but also as an extremely accomplished entertainer – his speeches on the microphone in the ring are legendary. The superstar moved to WWE some time ago and left WCW, and shortly after the negotiations, Jericho was already part of the top squad.

8. “Big Show” Paul Wight (net worth: 17 million euros)

There is a certain disparity in the fights of the giant Paul Wight: all fans cheer for the legend, but all fans also want their idol to finally put his career to rest and call out to him “please retire!” But the giant probably can’t hear the advice anyway, up there in his hemisphere, and if you made as much money as he does, then you would probably make as much effort to comply with the request as he does – namely none. Wight was previously known and feared as “The Giant”, but his name was changed so that no one would confuse him with “Andre the Giant”.

7. Kurt Angle (net worth: 21 million euros)

The only wrestler on this list who was able to start professional wrestling straight after college is Kurt Angle. The icon won the gold medal in heavyweight wrestling at the 1996 Olympic Games – despite significant health problems! He often and very loudly proclaims this fact (“…with a broken freakin’ neck!!”). After the Olympic Games, he devoted himself exclusively to his professional career, in which he initially received little renown until the WWE signed him in 1998.

6. Hulk Hogan (net worth: 25 million euros)

He is an indispensable part of the wrestling scene. For many years, Hulk Hogan dominated his fights and the ring in various leagues. Terrence “Terry” Gene Bollea, Hogan’s real name, earned a fortune himself. In 2015, he was kicked out of the WWE without notice due to racist comments. The divorce from his wife cost the superstar 70% of his former fortune.

5. “Stone Cold” Steve Austin (net worth: 30 million euros)

Yes, admittedly, John Cena is the current crowd favorite in the WWE, but he will probably never reach the level of fame that “Stone Cold” Steve Austin enjoyed during his active time. During his career, the athlete often changed organizations and trainers, and was always worried about the sales figures for his fights. However, after his spectacular victory in the “King of the Ring” tournament in 1997, his name alone was enough to attract crowds to the halls.

4. John Cena (net worth: 80 million euros)

Probably the biggest name in current, relevant, competitive American wrestling: John Cena. The superstar made his WWE debut in 2002 in a fight against the then much more experienced Kurt Angle, which he almost won. Cena became a fan favorite, also due to the fact that he insults and verbally attacks his opponents like a white rapper before moving into hand-to-hand combat in a spectacular manner.

3. “Triple H” Paul Levesque (net worth: 150 million euros)

It’s hard to believe that the guy with the horrific name “Terra Ryzing” who debuted in the ring 20 years ago is still a big name in the WWE today. But he is! The veteran worked briefly with WCW before returning to the WWE and taking a newcomer under his wing. He also made a lot of money from the sale of WWE with his wife Stephanie McMahan.

2. Vince McMahon (net worth: 2.68 billion euros)

Vince McMahon is the big boss of the WWE and, thanks to his superstars, one of the richest people in the world. He was the company’s largest shareholder for a long time and earned billions from the sale of the WWE. He himself has contributed significantly to the WWE’s incredible success over the past few decades.