Criticizing YouTube vlogger-turned-WWE-wrestler Logan Paul feels like a layup at this point.
He gives the world plenty of fodder: his alleged crypto and NFT scams; the myriad controversies surrounding Prime Hydration, the sports drink company he co-founded with a fellow YouTuber; his 2019 declaration to “go gay for just one month,” implying being gay was a choice; or the infamous Japan “suicide forest” video published to YouTube in 2017, where he included uncensored footage of what appeared to be a dead body.
There are plenty of reasons to keep shining the spotlight of critique on the multi-millionaire. This isn’t even an extensive list of all of Paul’s controversies.
Knowing this, it should come as no surprise that Paul stepped in it again Thursday, joining the transphobic droning on social media surrounding female Algerian Olympic boxer Imane Khelif.
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Khelif defeated Italian boxer Angela Carini Thursday after Carini retired from their bout 46 seconds into the first round, stating she’d “never been hit so hard in my life.” The finish of the fight sparked a wave of transphobia from the usual anti-trans suspects on social media, claiming Khelif was a man and shouldn’t be allowed to compete against women.
Paul was one of those who expressed such via X, formerly known as Twitter.
“This is the purest form of evil unfolding right before your eyes,” Paul wrote in a now-deleted post. “A man was allowed to beat up a woman on a global stage, crushing her life’s dream while fighting for her deceased father. This delusion must end.”
He doubled down on his statement hours later in another post.
“Oopsies! I might be guilty of spreading misinformation along with the entirety of this app. Although she’s been previously disqualified for failing a “gender test” and has XY chromosomes, some sources say Imane Khelif was born a biological woman,” he wrote. “I stand by my sentiment that biological men should not compete against biological women in any sport and if you disagree you’re a sick f—.”
Paul’s post, like many others, point to Khelif being disqualified from last year’s Women’s World Championships by the International Boxing Association after failing “gender eligibility tests” as the validation for their claims about Khelif’s sex.
The International Olympic Committee was subsequently lumped into the fiasco for allowing Khelif to compete at the Paris Olympic Games.
What few, if any, of these posts, including Paul’s, take into account is the entire situation surrounding the so-called controversy.
The IBA’s statement on Wednesday regarding the inclusion of Khelif at the Olympics cites that she “did not undergo a testosterone examination” but instead was subjected to “a separate and recognized test, whereby the specifics remain confidential.” No further information regarding the test, the lab that analyzed the results, what she was being tested for or the organization that oversaw the testing process has been divulged publicly.
At no point in the IBA’s statement does the organization refer to Khelif as a man despite claims from some on social media.
That lack of transparency is relevant because of the IOC’s decision to sever ties with the IBA as its official governing body of Olympic boxing last year. The IOC cited a continued lack of financial transparency, ethical issues with referees and judges and a failure to complete governance reforms when deciding to end the relationship.
Another key point to the dissolution of the IOC’s relationship with the IBA centered on current IBA president Umar Kremlev. His ties to staunch anti-LGBTQ Russian politicians, opposition to independent selection of judges and referees and keeping Russian state-owned energy corporation Gazprom as the IBA’s sole sponsor as Russia began invading Ukraine in 2022 and Gazprom supported the invasion caused concern within the IOC.
All of that is to say that there remain many questions and circumstances of influence that likely will take time to fully answer. But who wants to wait for the facts when social media cred among transphobes is there for the taking with immediate, uninformed and misrepresentative responses?
Paul’s posts are abhorrent, but his status as a WWE wrestler gives them another layer. WWE’s annual “SummerSlam” event is set to take place this Saturday from Cleveland, and a sizable amount of the marketing around the event has centered on Paul, who was born in the Cleveland suburb Westlake, defending his WWE United States championship in front of his hometown crowd.
The company also heavily features advertisements for Prime Energy at some of its events, including putting the Prime Energy logo on the ring canvas at Premium Live Events like “SummerSlam.”
WWE itself is somewhat wishy-washy in regards to how its business practices intersect with the LGBTQ community.
The company features multiple out LGBTQ wrestlers on its roster and has seen some wrestlers, notably Chelsea Green, include messages of support for LGBTQ populations in their ring gear, entrance gear and social media posts. It has sent representatives to GLAAD events in recent years, most notably out LGBTQ wrestler Sonya Deville.
The company has even done Pride photoshoots in previous years during Pride month, though this year it didn’t in favor of including support for LGBTQ people among other social and cultural causes in a single PSA.
At the same time, WWE continues to do business with the Saudi royal family despite its criminalization of LGBTQ identities. WWE-contracted talent have faced little consequence for posting anti-LGBTQ slurs online and WWE programming has featured derogatory depictions of and statements regarding LGBTQ people and relationships as recently as 2022.
Paul’s statements regarding Khelif couldn’t have come at a worse time optics-wise for the company, but now the question is what will WWE do about it, especially as he continues to stand by his comments.
The company’s declaration of a “new era” under new owners Endeavor and the leadership of WWE CCO Paul “Triple H” Levesque provides a chance to make a noteworthy statement against transphobia via one of its most high-profile talents, but the worry and perceived conclusion by many is that it will do nothing, hoping this blows over like other controversies. But inaction is still action.
Outsports reached out to WWE for comment regarding Paul’s initial post about Khelif but did not respond as of press time. This article will be updated should the company provide a response.
