The WWE Hall of Famer Verne Gagne pulled himself away from American football to become a part of pro wrestling. Verne Gagne was a renowned wrestling promoter and the owner of the AWA wrestling promotion. Verne Gagne and the co-founder Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Promotion in 1960.

WWE legends such as Hulk Hogan, Ric Flair, The Iron Sheik, and Ricky Steamboat were among the names that trained under Verne Gagne and his AWA promotion.

Before getting into professional wrestling, the AWA owner was a rising football star. Under coach George Hauser, in 1943, Verne joined the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers team. In his junior years, he played both defensive end and tight end.

The AWA owner was a part of major NFL teams before wrestling!

While playing for Minnesota, Gagne honed impressive football skills and caught the Chicago Bear’s eyes. As a result, the NFL‘s Chicago Bears picked Verne Gagne in the 1947 draft. However, his passion for wrestling did not ever leave his side.

Chicago Bears promised a potential career to Verne Gagne; however, he wanted to both play football and wrestle.

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In the documentary, The Spectacular Legacy of the AWA, Verne Gagne’s son, Greg, mentioned that Bears owner George Halas didn’t want Gagne to leave the football field. This caused disputes between George and Verne over salary. Later, Verne Gagne in 1949 was signed by the NFL’s Green Bay Packers.

Although neither Packers nor Bears owned the Hall of Famer, Verne Gagne was finally released by Green Bay Packer for good. However, it appears that Gagne was also in demand by the San Francisco 49ers.

In Minnesota’s Golden Age of Wrestling, George Schire stated, “The San Francisco 49ers offered him [Verne] a contract that would start at 5000$ a year.”

Did WWE Hall of Famer Verne Gagne make his move into wrestling because of money?

The NFL in the 1950s was not as massive a sport as it is today. American football during the time did not offer great money to earn. However, professional wrestling was one of the most popular sports that promised wealth and growth. Undoubtedly, Verne Gagne’s final move in the wrestling industry was admirable. He pursued a career in professional wrestling to become one of the greatest.

David Condon of the Chicago Tribune in 1954 wrote that, “Gagne earned $75000 to $100,00 a year and that it takes no mathematical genius, then, to figure that Gagne better his annual income by something like 1000 percent when he retired from the gridiron to become a full-fledged wrestler.”

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Verne Gagne’s decision to switch into wrestling was because of the disparity in salary between the two sports. However, it was simply a decision led by his love for wrestling. In the WWE-produced documentary, the Hall of Famer mentioned, “Wrestling was my love and very good to me for a long time.” 

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The WWE Hall of Famer, Verne Gagne, debuted in wrestling in 1949 and had his last match in 1986. Indeed, WWE gave him something that maybe he could not have achieved in the NFL.