Hoping wrestling fans will pump up visitor numbers, Orange County commissioners today pledged $850,000 from tourist tax revenue toward a bid to bring WWE Royal Rumble 2024 to Camping World Stadium.

The board followed the unanimous recommendation of the Sports Incentive Committee, a panel created in 2017 to study funding proposals to attract marquee sporting events to Orange County stadiums and arenas.

The incentive money is part of a fund created from a small cut of revenue generated by the county’s 6% tax added to the cost of a hotel room and other short-term lodging. The tax raised a record $336 million last year.

Royal Rumble would draw an estimated 54,000 fans, more than half from outside Orlando, according to Jason Siegel, president and CEO of the Greater Orlando Sports Commission, who briefed the incentive panel in March.

But it also would provide millions more in promotional value for Central Florida tourism, he said.

Formerly held in smaller venues, Royal Rumble has exploded into a stadium show, Siegel said.

Most recently staged in January in front of 51,000 fans at the Alamodome in San Antonio and millions more on pay-per-view TV, the event generated an estimated $34 million in media value for its Texas host city.

Royal Rumble is one of five annual events promoted by WWE, World Wrestling Entertainment.

The others include SummerSlam, Money In The Bank, and Wrestlemania, a kind of Super Bowl for WWE, whose superstar athlete-performers include box-office attractions John Cena and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Orlando has hosted Wrestlemania three times — 2008 at the former Citrus Bowl; 2017 in front of 75,000 fans at Camping World Stadium; and 2020 at WWE’s training center when it was staged without fans because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Siegel said WWE shows reach a vast, diverse audience as 47% of its audience is Black or Hispanic.

A third of its fans are female; 67% are younger than 50; and seven of the 15 most followed female athletes on social media are WWE wrestlers.

The Greater Orlando Sports Commission estimates Royal Rumble could generate 40,000 room nights including associated WWE events, which could persuade out-of-town attendees to extend their stays for multiple nights.

The event is tentatively set for Jan. 27.

Siegel’s presentation to the incentive panel began with a minute-long video featuring rapper Pitbull’s “I Feel Good” over a montage of WWE stars performing on a wide range of TV and streaming platforms.

Visit Orlando estimates a potential economic impact of $28 million and a boon for downtown hoteliers during post-holiday January, a “notoriously slow” period, said Craig Leicester, general manager of the Crowne Plaza Orlando-Downtown.

“The presence of WWE … has always been an exceptional win for the downtown market,” he said.

Orlando is sometimes overshadowed by its tourist district and theme parks, but the WWE event would cast a “positive light” on downtown, said Cheryl Seckman, general manager of Courtyard by Marriott Orlando Downtown.

She said basketball fans who stayed downtown for NCAA tournament games at Amway Arena were impressed.

“They love downtown,” she said. “They feel it’s safe; it’s fun.”

shudak@orlandosentinel.com