Note on WWE Pulling All Sting Merchandise

– As previously reported, WWE pulled all the Sting merchandise from the WWE Shop this week. Dave Meltzer addressed the topic on today’s Wrestling Observer Radio broadcast. Meltzer stated that Sting’s WWE contract is up and was likely expired for a while.

There were reports that Sting was no longer under contract with WWE going back to last May. They started surfacing after Mattel removed a Sting figure from the Legend Series 7 line earlier that month.

Basically, it sounds like a similar situation to Brock Lesnar. Lesnar’s WWE contract had actually expired earlier in the year after WrestleMania 36. However, it didn’t become widely known until WWE stopped selling Brock Lesnar’s merchandise from the WWE Shop several months later. So, it appears WWE contracts allow the company to continue selling a talent’s merchandise for a time until after their contracts expire and they enter free agency. The exact timeframe WWE is allowed to sell merchandise after the deals expire is unknown, but Meltzer noted it lasts for about several months.

Additionally, Meltzer speculated that Sting likely got more than the typical WWE Legends contract. He wrestled his last match at WWE Night of Champions 2015 in a match against Seth Rollins. He later announced his retirement after being inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame the following year.