Getty Image / Wesley Hitt
Roughly a decade after WWE terminated its contract with Hulk Hogan, one of wrestling’s biggest names for decades, the two are coming back together in an official capacity after The Hulkster has been sitting in the wings since 2018 when they put him back in the WWE Hall of Fame. The WWE announced today a multi-year partnership with Hulk Hogan‘s Real American Beer which is billed as one of America’s fastest-growing beer brands and has seen meteoric growth since the April 2023 Bud Light controversy began and beer bands began to materialize out of nowhere to siphon off those who ditched Bud Light.
In a press release, the WWE announced they “will showcase Real American Beer branding within WWE’s weekly flagship program Monday Night Raw as well as other key WWE assets.” Not only that, Real American Beer will be the featured sponsor on the mat for every episode of WWE Raw when it hits Netflix.
Hulk Hogan seemed as stoked as anyone to be working with WWE again after they terminated him in 2015 over a recording obtained by TMZ with Hulk Hogan uttering racial slurs. In the press release, Hogan said “well, let me tell you something brother! From the first time I stepped into the ring, I’ve always fought for something bigger than myself. I’m thrilled to bring Real American Beer into the ring with WWE. Together, we’re bringing that pride to America, one beer, one match at a time, brother!”
In addition to being in the ring and having the multi-year partnership, Hulk Hogan’s Real American Beer appears to have the full might of the WWE. Real American Beer will receive “social and digital support, including original, short-form content that will be distributed across WWE’s popular social and digital channels which reach more than 700 million users globally.” Real American Beer will also be able to use WWE’s top talent on its promotional displays.
This all sounds great for the parties involved… Hulk Hogan, WWE, and Real American Beer… But a quick perusal of social media provides a healthy reminder that most people haven’t forgotten why the WWE terminated its contract with Hulk Hogan in the first place. I’ll leave that to you all whether you want to see what most people on social media have to say about this.
It also warrants mention that Real American Beer itself has been accused by at least one influencer of racial discrimination, an accusation they vehemently denied in a statement.
Before we wrap this up, though, it’s worth calling out where the name of Hulk Hogan’s beer came from: Real American Beer. For those who might be too young to remember, Hulk Hogan once had this ‘Real American’ song which appeared in a 1985 WWF compilation and as it turns out, the song was never meant for Hogan at all…
‘Real American’ was written by Rick Derringer and it was originally just supposed to be a song about American pride and had no attachment to Hulk Hogan. That didn’t last long, however, as the track became wildly popular in the wrestling community and the rest was history.