My theory on why the "Wrestling booms" happened!

[braveh]

This is not waterproof or scientific in any way but anyway but my theory is that when other popular sports decline then wrestling booms happen.

If the first wrestling boom happened during 86-88 then it coincided with the lowest rated NFL seasons (from what I heard) one of them being the season where they used replacement players for weeks.

If the second wrestling boom happened during 99-2001 the it coincided with the decline of boxing. Tyson had lost his two fights against Holyfield. There was no longer a face of boxing, or a megastar. I personally remember my group of friends going to from ordering Tyson ppvs in the mid 90s to having no interest in boxing whatsoever in 98-99.


Just for comparison

I believe NHL had their best year during the MLB strike in 94 when Rangers - Kings reached the Stanley cup finals...

NBA had their best years when NFL was in disarray in many cities (LA, Houston, Cleveland) and Jordan ruled.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I think it was Rangers/Canucks.

Professional sports have an influence on the popularity of professional wrestling. They compete for our disposable income through TV, live events, and merchandising. But the success of the industry is mostly dependent on the talent. Guys like Hogan, Goldberg, Sting, Austin, Rock, VKM, and Macho Man drove those periods through their mainstream appeal. I think you could make a better argument for the success of pro wrestling during American economic growth and what trails thereafter.

 

[ABMorales787]

Really? It doesn't have to do with a massive superstar coming along and changing the way the industry works? Because that's what I saw when Hogan and Austin took hold and that's what I see due to John Cena. The last thing that went through my mind was that it was because of sports.

NBA had their best years when NFL was in disarray in many cities (LA, Houston, Cleveland) and Jordan ruled.

And you think it had more to do with the NFL than Michael Jordan being a bonafide superstar?

 

[braveh]

Really? It doesn't have to do with a massive superstar coming along and changing the way the industry works? Because that's what I saw when Hogan and Austin took hold and that's what I see due to John Cena. The last thing that went through my mind was that it was because of sports.



And you think it had more to do with the NFL than Michael Jordan being a bonafide superstar?

Yes because in addition to the troubles in Houston and L.A the Chicago team and N.Y teams didn't perform.

I think it was Rangers/Canucks.

Professional sports have an influence on the popularity of professional wrestling. They compete for our disposable income through TV, live events, and merchandising. But the success of the industry is mostly dependent on the talent. Guys like Hogan, Goldberg, Sting, Austin, Rock, VKM, and Macho Man drove those periods through their mainstream appeal. I think you could make a better argument for the success of pro wrestling during American economic growth and what trails thereafter.

I think the superstars are born when you have the massive audience watching. Why did Tebow become more of a household name than Brett Favre? Because so many people were watching him.

 

[ABMorales787]

Yes because in addition to the troubles in Houston and L.A the Chicago team and N.Y teams didn't perform.

Yes, and that all somehow, someway got parlayed into Michael Jordan becoming a megastar. It wasn't Space Jam or his insane skills, it was clearly so many people watching. Idiot.

I think the superstars are born when you have the massive audience watching. Why did Tebow become more of a household name than Brett Favre? Because so many people were watching him.

You mean it's not because Favre retired and Tebow's religious background public? You mean to tell me that all happened because the ratings for football were at the 11 mark? Quit being such a dunce, man. It's the other way around people flock to see stars. Stars aren't born because people are just watching them more. Raw was in a stinkhole due to Nitro and when Austin came around, people went to see him. Issues with other sports had nothing to do with it.

 

[HBsam31]

I have to agree with Killjoy here. I am a wrestling fan no matter what, but as far as other sports go I kinda go with what is most interesting. I am not a fan of the NBA in any way shape or form, but i watched it all the time when Jordan was on top. The reason was to see Jordan do his thing. I am from Pittsburgh, and have only watched hockey when Mario Lemieux was on top, and I started watching again when Sydney Crosby came to the team. One more example. Americans actually cared about soccer for a minute when David Beckham came here to play. I am not saying other sports don't have a little something to do with it, but people flock to something to see stars. Stars are not made because people just happen to be watching. My first wrestling experience was Mania 3. I made my dad get it for me because I heard so much about Hulk Hogan. I came to wrestling because of the star.

 

[George Steele's Barber]

I think the superstars are born when you have the massive audience watching. Why did Tebow become more of a household name than Brett Favre? Because so many people were watching him.

No, the media helped make Tebow a household name along with his accomplishments. Lots of people were watching at first because it's football but as Tebow began winning in shocking and remarkable ways the media spread the word and that brought in more people.

The best thing the NFL has done in the last twenty years is embrace Fantasy Football. It has made every game meaningful and guys like LeSean McCoy superstars. People who normally don't watch are watching games just to root for his stat line, not because there is strife in the hockey labor market or because the Red Sox are having a shit year.

Same goes for WWE. Austin and The Rock became mega draws. Word got around about them and it brought in a ton of new and returning fans. Jordan retiring and MNF feeling stale helped the WWE but it was far from that influential on the success of the AE.

You may be able to help your argument with some actual stats or dates or something. Even if you were right I could never accept it based on your poorly put together argument.

 

[dtroppe]

No I dont buy it. Boxing in the late 90s had no impact on pro wrestling's popularity. Wrestling boomed then because there was a mass appeal. The programming was original, captivating, competitive and over all enjoyable. I think a large number of people bought into and related to the storylines in 97-99. Austin was the best character to ever come along. He brought in guys that thought wrestling was stupid. The Montreal Screwjob added a huge chunk of reality that made people question what was real and was scripted. I dont think that since VKM announced wrestling was a work, that the lines between real and fantasy were ever so blurred, and I dont think they ever will be that blurred again- it got to far fetched in the early 2000s for anyone to believe it to be unscripted. And on top of that, the NWO became a cultural phenomenon. Those guys were in the mainstream and were so cool that people just had to watch.

I doubt there will ever be another boom that equals that of the late 90s. I dont see how it could ever be so original and captivating.

 

[Peoples_Champ]

Everything in life is cyclical. The popularity of wrestling, along with other sports, are cyclical. I'm a fan of pretty much every professional sport, but I go crazy about a team or a particular sport for a couple years before I go to a different one. I was into WWE a couple years about but right now I'm crazy about NFL.

Point being, there has to be a catalyst. The reason I got into NFL was because I wanted to see how RGIII develops and see if my Lions can make the playoffs again. The reason I got into WWE last year was the Punk storyline. The reason in 1997 I got into wrestling was because I wanted to see how the Bret / Shawn storyline evolved. The strength of catalyst determines how long I care about the topic. I'm wavering on my interest in WWE right now because my interest in Punk is low, but my interest in Daniel Bryan is high, thus I have a new reason to watch. Same in 1997, my interest in Bret was low when Starrcade 97 happened, but my interest grew in the nWo. And if the Detroit Lions don't make the playoffs, well, hopefully Royal Rumble will be around the corner.

It's impossible to narrowly define why the wrestling boom happened because of how much entertainment there is out there (could it also be due to shitty Hollywood movies in the 12-19 segment? Who knows), but any theory is plausible.

 

[braveh]

Everything in life is cyclical. The popularity of wrestling, along with other sports, are cyclical. I'm a fan of pretty much every professional sport, but I go crazy about a team or a particular sport for a couple years before I go to a different one. I was into WWE a couple years about but right now I'm crazy about NFL.

Right there you go. It is cyclical and I also believe in the concept of critical mass. When there is enough people watching, when there is enough media interest, you get the upwards spiral of media coverage, casual fans coming in, lunch discussions etc....

As far as boxing/mma/wrestling I truly believe that when boxing was strong, wrestling was weak. When boxing was weak, wrestling was strong. Then when MMA got strong, wrestling got weak.

critical mass 
noun

2.
an amount necessary or sufficient to have a significant effect or to achieve a result: a critical mass of popular support

 

[DirtyD79]

A lot of it is that wrestling was able to tap into the cultural zeitgeist of the time period. For example the boom in the 80s or the Rock n' Wrestling Era as it's also known was a result of WWE working with singers like Cyndi Lauper and Alice Cooper. They took wrestling from a bunch of middle aged beer bellies in smoky high school gyms to the flashy costumes, pumpin' entrance themes, and young stars in bright clean arenas that caught on with the younger audiences. Kids also enjoyed the larger than life personalities of stars like Hulk Hogan, The Ultimate Warrior, and The Macho Man.

Come the 90s you had The Attitude Era, ECW, and The nWo. You had raunchy humor and gritty antiheros like Stone Cold Steve Austin. This was the same age where Grunge and Gangsta rap were the big thing in music and TV shows like Married With Children and Jerry Springer sent the squeaky clean Huxtables and Tanners packing. Comics saw gritty antiheroes and more adult themes. Wrestling was able to tap into that. It spoke to the rebellious Generation X fans.

The problem is wrestling just can't seem to tap into what's hip and relevant in pop culture these days. It's too top heavy with out of touch old men and white bread suburbanite sitcom writers. Sure you have WWE talking about Twitter and Facebook constantly but hearing an old fossil like Jerry Lawler and a geek like Michael Cole talking about it along with all those annoying self congratulatory "Did you Know?" blurbs doesn't seem hip, it just comes across as Vince McMahon screaming "We're still relevant dammit!"

 

[the_mighty_biggs]

first wrestling boom was cause of the rock n wrestling connection with MTV

second was cause of the NWO and the Monday night wars between WWE and WCW

and the third will probably never happen