WWE Raw ratings touch an all-time high amid ongoing Vince McMahon controversy: Report

The 76-year-old Vince McMahon, is currently under investigation by the WWE board, over allegations of misconduct involving hush money paid to a female employee, with whom he had an affair. Last Friday, WWE announced that McMahon has stepped aside from his position as the CEO and Chairman of WWE. However, McMahon made his second TV appearance in a week during the WWE Monday Night Raw episode on June 20, which is understood to be necessary for WWE to make a point.

Raw achieves record viewership amid Vince McMahon controversy

However, to WWE’s relief, the most recent episode of WWE Raw had an average viewership number of 1,986,000. As reported by the Wrestling Inc., this is the highest total viewership the Raw brand has received since the April 4 episode after the WrestleMania 38. At the same time, the episode garnered 709,000 viewers in the 18-49 demographic, which is the highest since April 11. 

More about the staggering numbers achieved by WWE Monday Night Raw

The report further stated that June 20’s episode of Raw received a 17% increase in the total viewership from the previous week, while the 18-49 demographic witnessed a 27% boost. It is noteworthy that Raw garnered such viewership, amid strong competition from the Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs between the Colorado Avalanche and the Tampa Bay Lightning, which aired on ABC.

About Vince McMahon controversy

WWE Corporate issued a statement on Friday about the ongoing investigation on McMahon and said, "WWE and the Board of Directors today announced that a Special Committee of the Board is conducting an investigation into alleged misconduct by its Chairman and CEO Vincent McMahon and John Laurinaitis, head of talent relations, and that, effective immediately, McMahon has voluntarily stepped back from his responsibilities as CEO and Chairman of the Board until the conclusion of the investigation". 

What did Vince McMahon say during his appearance at Raw?

The episode saw Vince McMahon making an unannounced appearance, just after the five-way fatal match between  Carmella, Liv Morgan, Becky Lynch, Asuka, and Alexa Bliss. The 76-year-old started off his in-ring promo by mentioning that Raw has been the longest-running TV show for the last 30 years. McMahon also hyped the return of 16-time world champion John Cena on Raw, next week.

With Cena’s return to Raw scheduled for the next week episode, the viewership can be expected to go much higer. In his promo, McMahon also said that Cena has remained on the top almost for the two-thirds of the time that Raw has been on the air.  Cena made his official TV debut as a rookie on June 27, 2002, after he appeared on SmackDown to challenge Kurt Angle.

(Image: wwe.com)