The Impact of WWE on Global Wrestling – For some time, wrestling has become a mainstream sport in different countries. We will not debate whether wrestling is real or staged, but our topic is to explore the impact of WWE on global wrestling. As compared to other sports, professional wrestling is available in a few countries only. It will take time for other countries to add wrestling into their sports categories. There have been many successful attempts to promote this in other countries. In 1921, United World Wrestling was established. This organization aimed to make efforts for the promotion of different forms of wrestling. More than 185 nations are part of this organization. Even in 2023, professional players from only a few top countries participate in professional wrestling events.
World Wrestling Entertainment, or WWE, is the biggest name in professional wrestling. It is an American wrestling Promotion Company owned by TKO Group Holdings. Apart from promoting and arranging professional wrestling events and competitions, World Wrestling Entertainment has now started its film, football and other business ventures. They have become a huge enterprise to manage wrestling matches and other forms of entertainment. This promotion was established back in 1953 by the name of Capitol Wrestling Corporation. After some disputes, CWC left the National Wrestling Alliance and became an independent entity, the Worldwide Wrestling Federation.
WWE and its Impact on Global Wrestling
In 2011, WWF changed their official name to World Wrestling Entertainment or WWE. Right now, WWE is the largest wrestling promotion in the world. Raw and SmackDown are two primary touring groups by WWE. How did World Wrestling Entertainment help global wrestling grow beyond boundaries? We will look at the major role of WWE in professional wrestling globally.
International Expansion
WWE is a major player in helping professional wrestling reach a global audience. International events and global touring tournaments attracted viewers and players from different regions to the wrestling world. Today, every country has a large or small federation to promote professional wrestling at national and international levels. In other words, WWE helped with the digitization of conventional wrestling. Online platforms operated by WWE allowed a global audience to watch their favorite matches from anywhere.
Wrestling is not the only entertainment sector that has changed over the years. The gambling and casino industries have also evolved to a whole new level. Online casinos have changed the face of the casino industry. Physical casinos seem like the story of the past. For a common gambler, playing at online casinos is a lot easier and affordable. Without bearing additional traveling costs and accommodation, one can play thousands of games from the comfort of the house.
Marketing strategies and freebies also attracted millions of new players to the digital world of gambling. Online casinos offer different bonuses and promotions to help reduce the risk factor. While playing with these additional funds or free spins no deposit bonuses for different games, they don’t have to worry about losing money. Just like wrestling, gambling has also become a mainstream form of entertainment. The public has started seeing online gambling as a safe and secure form of entertainment.
Mainstream Exposure
Wrestling has been the favorite pick of a specific type of audience for a very long time. Professional wrestling tournaments and events were not broadcasted on mainstream media. As a media promotion network, WWE brought these matches on world’s top media companies and mainstream channels. Easy access to wrestling content helped to attract a new fan base. Many wrestlers have also become popular in the film industry, including:
- Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson
- John Cena
- Dave Bautista
- “Stone Cold” Steve Austin
- Hulk Hogan
- Randy Orton
- Kevin Nash
- Andre the Giant
- Rowdy Roddy Piper
All of these wrestlers started their careers in professional wrestling and then shifted to the film industry. Major names like John Cena, Rock and Dave Batista had great success in the film industry.
Development of Talent
There are different training programs initiated by WWE to help the new talent in the industry. With proper guidance and training, these new faces can become the next global stars. These programs have produced many great wrestlers who had success at local and international events. Without WWE, they might have stayed hidden forever.
Global Talent Recruitment
Countries like Japan, Mexico, the UK, Egypt, the USA and many other nations are now taking an interest in establishing proper infrastructure for the promotion of professional wrestling. In collaboration with local sports authorities, WWE is also working on establishing professional training institutes in countries where wrestling is not so popular. Easy access to these facilities will help new wrestlers to be ready for international events.
Production and Entertainment Value
Wrestling matches have become a complete package of entertainment. WWE matches are professionally organized to add storytelling, scripted moments, and theatrical elements to make these matches more interesting and realistic for the audience. Production values are also better due to the use of the latest technologies.
Collaboration and Competition
For a common wrestling fan, WWE is the biggest name in the wrestling sport. That is actually true, but there are some other major names, too. Increasing viewership of wrestling matches has helped other promotions to grow. Some other promotions like WWE include:
- AEW (All Elite Wrestling)
- NJPW (New Japan Pro-Wrestling)
- Impact Wrestling (formerly TNA)
- ROH (Ring of Honor)
- CMLL (Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre)
- AAA (Asistencia Asesoría y Administración)
- MLW (Major League Wrestling)
- PWG (Pro Wrestling Guerrilla)
You might not have heard these names in mainstream media, but these promotions are making good efforts at local and international levels. Sooner or later, there will be some other major brands like WWE in the professional wrestling realm.
Conclusion
WWE has a huge impact on the growth and international branding of professional wrestling. It is the largest promotion for wrestling events, but many other big names also deserve recognition. Marketing of wrestling events has also helped to gain new viewership from countries where wrestling is not recognized as a professional sport. Promising efforts by WWE and other promotions will be quite helpful for the sustainable wrestling community.
The Impact of WWE on Global Wrestling
