WWE deemed 'essential business' in Florida, mayor says
The WWE has been deemed an "essential business" in Florida, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said Monday, allowing the company to resume live television shows from its Orlando training facility and Full Sail University in Winter Park.
According to Demings, the WWE initially was not designated as essential and therefore not exempt from the state's shelter-in-place order, which took effect April 1 and runs through April 30. That decision was reversed after "some conversation" with Gov. Ron DeSantis' office, Demings said during a Monday news conference.
"I think initially there was a review that was done. They were not initially deemed an essential business," Demings said. "With some conversation with the governor's office regarding the governor's order, they were deemed an essential business. So therefore they were allowed to remain open."
Essential businesses that are supposed to remain open during the state's stay-at-home order include those in the health care, financial, energy, food, communications and transportation sectors. Demings did not elaborate on what put the WWE into that category.
Messages left by ESPN to DeSantis' office were not immediately returned.
Starting Monday with its Raw program, WWE will run live shows without fans after several weeks of taped programming, a spokesperson confirmed to ESPN on Saturday.
WWE has three TV shows per week: Raw (on USA Network), NXT (USA Network) on Wednesday and SmackDown (Fox) on Friday.
Information from ESPN's Marc Raimondi was used in this report.
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