U.S. sports officials including wrestling tzar Vince McMahon, scheduled for conference call with Donald Trump; Will Australia and other countries follow similar tact with Prime Ministers? - 4th April 2020

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Randy "Macho Man" Savage and Donald Trump (a property developer and casino owner at the time of WrestleMania 5)

by Greg Tingle

ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that President Donald Trump is scheduled to be on a phone call with all major sports league officials today at noon eastern, according to the White House.

The business heads scheduled to be on the call with Trump include Adam Silver (NBA), Cathy Englebert (WNBA), Rob Manfred (MLB), Roger Goodell (NFL), Gary Bettman (NHL), Jay Monahan (PGA Tour), Dana White (UFC), John Middlebrook or Jim France (NASCAR) and Don Gaber (MLS).

Pro wrestling mastermind and head honcho of the WWE, Vince McMahon, will also be on the call

Major sporting events are on hold until the coronavirus outbreak can be contained. The lingo is also known as "until further notice". As a result, American and almost all global based sports codes are weathering a financial storm.

Hopefully practical solutions will be realised, which will also involve not causing any extra danger to sports participants, management or fans.

The WWE and upstart All Elite Wrestling has content taped and in the can which would likely get them through numerous months of there being no live events.

The circumstances are forcing wrestling promotions to think outside the more and get more creative, including changing up the way interviews, promos and matches are being produced, as to try to maintain fan interest and quality, with mixed results. Many wrestling insiders believe that overall AEW adaption to the current world situation has been superior to the WWE response, at least at TV taping, but the situation is subjective and can change quickly. There is a fluid situation with WWE's WrestleMania 36 event which has seen more cinematic approaches to matches which have been received very favorably by fans and media. Football codes have evergreen footage, with footy being an entirely different animal to pro wrestling. Just ask Vince McMahon who is also the brainchild of the XFL - with its season on hold. And just when XFL was getting rave reviews. Show business and sports business can be an uphill batter at the best of times, but this may just be the toughest situation the global sports world has ever faced judging by the likely trillions of dollars all codes are collectively out of pocket on. A masterstroke is required, but can Trump deliver? The time is now!

See a key Twitter report from Adam Schefter on developments

Adam Schefter Twitter

Scheduled participants on call with Trump:

NBA – Adam Silver
WNBA – Cathy Engelbert
MLB – Rob Manfred
NFL – Roger Goodell
NHL – Gary Bettman
PGA Tour – Jay Monahan
UFC – Dana White
WWE - Vince McMahon
NASCAR – John Middlebrook or Jim France.
MLS – Don Garber.

In Australia numerous sporting codes have been under significant financial pressure, with many clubs set to close down indefinitely. Australia's NRL, AFL and the cricket sector have all been looking into government bail outs, rescue packages and the like.

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Promotional photo for Hulk Hogan vs Andre The Giant. Credit: WWE