WrestleMania is by a distance the WWE network’s premier event. WrestleMania 33 was held at Orlando’s Citrus Bowl in Florida, and the event broke all sorts of WWE records. According to the Sun , WrestleMania 33 attracted a crowd of over 72,000 , a record attendance at the Citrus Bowl. The WrestleMania 33 crowd spent over $4 million on merchandise, and almost two million people around the world watched the show on TV. Only WrestleMania 32, held in Arlington, Texas, provided the WWE network with a bigger pay day.
We already know that WrestleMania 34 will see the “Show of Shows” return to New Orleans, but it seems that the WWE are giving serious consideration to moving WrestleMania outside of the U.S. for the first time ever. According to the Independent , the fans who flocked to WrestleMania 33 , have been sent a survey asking where they would like to see future editions of WrestleMania held.
The survey revealed a list of potential host cities for future editions of WrestleMania , and London, Toronto, and New York, were on the list. Wrestling fans in the UK would doubtless love to see WrestleMania hosted at the refurbished Wembley Stadium in London. The stadium seats over 80,000 people for soccer matches, and additional ringside seats, on the soccer pitch, would boost number higher still.
Here’s Why London Would Be the Perfect Venue For WrestleMania
In many ways, London would be the perfect city to host WrestleMania , but there are also some disadvantages. The biggest obstacle facing the WWE, if it decided to hold WrestleMania in London, is probably the time difference between the U.S. and the UK. London is five-hours ahead of EST, and eight hours ahead of Los Angeles.
That would mean that if the WrestleMania pre-show started at 5 p.m. in London, people in California would be sitting down to breakfast. It is likely that this would hurt WrestleMania’s U.S. viewing figures, something the WWE network would be keen to avoid.
On the other hand, the WWE network is pushing hard to expand its market in Asia. As recently reported in the Inquisitr, the promotion of wrestlers like Jinder Mahal, and Shinsuke Nakamura, is aimed at expanding in the Asian market , so a London start time would be likely to boost viewing figures for WrestleMania in that region.
London has great transport links, huge modern stadiums, and plenty of experience in holding huge events. Many U.S. based wrestling fans may be willing to combine a trip to WrestleMania with a vacation in one of Europe’s great cities. London is also a hotbed for wrestling fans, and Triple H has been working to boost the WWE brand in the UK.
Of course, there is nothing to suggest that WrestleMania will be held in London. The WWE are simply trying to gauge support at this time, but perhaps the time is right. The WWE have not held a major event in London since the highly successful SummerSlam in 1992.
[Featured Image by WWE]
