More on Anthem’s Firing of Scott D’Amore from TNA – Potential Reason, D’Amore Attempted to Buy TNA, Talent Reaction, Official Statement from New President

Feb 8, 2024

More on Scott D’Amore’s Firing from TNA – Potential Reason, D’Amore Attempted to Buy TNA, Status of D’Amore’s Creative Team & Staff

As noted before, Anthem Entertainment announced on Wednesday that they had terminated TNA Wrestling President Scott D’Amore’s contract from the company and named Anthony Cicione as the new President of TNA going forward.

Dave Meltzer reported in a recent episode of the Wrestling Observer Radio that his sources stated that one reason for D’Amore’s firing was due to him and Anthem officials being in a disagreement over budget-related issues. D’Amore reportedly wanted more money for TNA’s budget while Anthem officials were not willing to do so and even considered cutting their budget instead. Meltzer reported that D’Amore had always tried to get TNA’s budget increased and would be rebuffed each time.

In regards to Anthem, Meltzer reported that Anthem officials’ mentality towards TNA was to always want to produce TNA shows as cheaply as possible.

PWInsider’s Mike Johnson reported that his sources stated that D’Amore’s firing was not due to anything salacious and instead just a disagreement over how TNA should be operated that was just stuck at a cross-roads for some time.

Johnson reported that D’Amore had made an offer at some point in recent weeks to buy TNA from Anthem and this was something that Anthem had seriously considered doing before changing their minds against it. D’Amore reportedly had the financial backing from a major banking institution for his purchase offer. Johnson also reported that D’Amore knew that the clock was ticking away for his job and was aware at least a week to ten days ago that a change was going to be made affecting his job status.

In regards to Cicone, Johnson reported that those spoken to within the entertainment industry stated that Cicone is someone who has the reputation for being a stand-person and a really smart executive who will listen to feedback instead of just bulldozing the room.” Cicone reportedly has some working knowledge of what the pro wrestling industry offers to its partners and while he has never run a wrestling promotion before, the current expectation is that he will lean in on the expertise of others and consider their thoughts in TNA.

In regards to TNA’s creative team, Johnson reported that the current belief from TNA talents is that that remainder of D’Amore’s creative team and support staff will remain in place. TNA officials Gail Kim and Tommy Dreamer led the Zoom meeting with talents to inform them of D’Amore’s departure.

Johnson also reported that no talents had asked for their releases nor was this something brought up during Wednesday’s talent meeting.

Backstage Reaction to Talent Meeting Held on Wednesday Over Scott D’Amore’s Firing

In regards to TNA’s talent meeting on Wednesday, Johnson reported in a separate report that talent spoken to stated that during the meeting, it was stated to them that D’Amore had “stepped down” from the company, which was not the case nor even what was stated in the company’s official statement. Johnson reported that this did not sit well with talent and led to a negative reaction from those in attendance. One talent spoken to reportedly stated that “This wasn’t the way to start off” a relationship with the locker room, especially one that had been very close to D’Amore and someone who was very well liked.

Johnson reported that Cicone had read what was described as a “prepared statement” which several talent did not like but others were of the belief that he was in a no-win situation due to him being the one to replace D’Amore. This meeting reportedly also generated additional issues with talent due to them not being given the chance to ask any questions about D’Amore’s departure and changes being made. Several talents were extremely angry at the start of the meeting while some veteran talents tried to calm thing down and wanted to give D’Amore’s replacement a chance. One person spoken to reportedly stated that Anthem “had a lot of work to do” moving forward. Others reportedly were stated to be in a “wait and see” stance to see how things shake out and if there will be additional changes made while others are trying to keep the faith due to the remainder of D’Amore’s team was kept in place.

Johnson reported that one story that was making its way around talents is that Anthem wanted their TNA brand to be more in-line with the parent company going forward. Anthem officials had felt that TNA had become too D’Amore-centric with D’Amore as the face of the company. This reportedly was something that was not mentioned during the meeting.

New TNA President Anthony Cicone Issues Statement

New TNA Wrestling President Anthony Cicone recently issued an official statement about his new role in the company and his and Anthem’s plans for TNA going forward.

Statement from TNA Wrestling President Anthony Cicione
I am excited and honored to be the new President of TNA Wrestling, a company rich in tradition and loved by pro wrestling fans worldwide.
This move is intended to further integrate TNA Wrestling into the Entertainment Group of Anthem Sports & Entertainment as we work to leverage the resources of the entire company to add more value in areas such as production, distribution, marketing, viewership, customer acquisition, digital revenue streams, ad sales and sponsorships, and digital tech operations, among others.
Everyone at Anthem Sports & Entertainment is appreciative of and thankful for the years of dedication that Scott D’Amore gave to Anthem, and TNA Wrestling. Scott has been a part of TNA since 2003, holding many key roles. He played a vital role in the growth of the company and the evolution to its strong industry reputation today, including the 2024 return of the TNA Wrestling brand itself. I personally want to thank Scott for the passion he brought to the business and his personal touch with talent.
TNA Wrestling is in a position to take a big leap toward its next stage of growth and expansion. While we can create more operational efficiency the most exciting part is expanding existing revenue streams and developing new ones. Wrestling promotions have evolved from event driven businesses to global media enterprises.
I was in Las Vegas last month for both the Hard To Kill pay-per-view and the next night’s Snake Eyes show. Those were not just the two best pro wrestling shows I have attended, they were record-setting for TNA Wrestling on multiple fronts. That growth, expansion and popularity that thousands witnessed live and in-person in Las Vegas, and live on pay-per-view around the world, will continue in 2024. We have many exciting, groundbreaking announcements coming up over the next few months. Our momentum is continuing.
TNA Wrestling features an incredible roster of in-ring talent who will continue to shine and deliver incredible matches and moments. We have a behind-the-scenes crew and staff who are incredible at their jobs. Our business is being run by experienced professionals, and the fans will notice many improvements in the coming months. TNA’s success is attributable to its teamwork, and that team will continue to grow with more input from Anthem’s top executives, partners and others.
We know departures of well-respected executives can create uncertainty, but we are fully committed to this new business model. We are entering a new stage of growth. These changes bring together more leadership experience to help us elevate our operations.