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Post by KAMALARAMBO: BOOMSHAKALAKA!!! on Mar 30, 2020 15:22:19 GMT -5
What the long term effects are as a whole is a big question mark, but I thought speculating on what they will be particularly on the wrestling industry could be interesting.
Some things I could see...
*Some wrestlers becoming more germaphobic and retiring from the sport as a result. Of course people are more cautious now, but I’ve read reports that while most will revert back to old ways once the pandemic is over, a fraction will be long term effected to a severe extent. It makes sense to me that the wrestling industry won’t be immune from having such people.
*Some indies won’t come back from Covid-19. No idea which ones they will be, but having to suddenly close up shop I could see some indie promoters realizing how thin their profit margins are. Then you have some promoters whose day jobs may have been effected by Covid-19 so $1200 may not be enough to dig them out of the hole.
*Bigger promotions may put more focuses on having emergency plans. I don’t know though. I remember when WWE had to cancel a live Raw because of a travel ban in Connecticut. They seemed even less prepared this time around, but of course with Covid-19 you can’t really blame them. There’s no perfect way to handle it and certainly not one that allows them to go about business as usual.
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Glitch
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Post by Glitch on Mar 30, 2020 16:48:41 GMT -5
I can see this give AEW an edge over WWE. Both are forced to do very similar , bare bones shows, and thus the E is stripped of that big time feel that was to their advantage. When this is over, I wouldn't be surprised if AEW slowly starts rising up really high.
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mattyy
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Post by mattyy on Mar 30, 2020 16:53:25 GMT -5
with all the reports of wrestlers upset that WrestleMania is going forward as planned(and will since it's taped), I could see a lot of wrestlers up and leaving. While some indies may not return, some may sprout in their place. I think your PWGs, AEWs, WWEs, ROHs, they'll be fine.. hell even something like a GCW and Beyond will be safe. The other companies, not so much.. but with WWE losing a large sum of money during this, they'll have to let go of their "stock pile wrestlers so no one else can use them" mentality. Opportunity could grow from this.
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Post by KAMALARAMBO: BOOMSHAKALAKA!!! on Mar 30, 2020 17:01:14 GMT -5
with all the reports of wrestlers upset that WrestleMania is going forward as planned(and will since it's taped), I could see a lot of wrestlers up and leaving. While some indies may not return, some may sprout in their place. I think your PWGs, AEWs, WWEs, ROHs, they'll be fine.. hell even something like a GCW and Beyond will be safe. The other companies, not so much.. but with WWE losing a large sum of money during this, they'll have to let go of their "stock pile wrestlers so no one else can use them" mentality. Opportunity could grow from this. Good points. For even the smaller companies that are able to weather the storm they could get a shot in the arm when/if WWE has to release some talented people who aren’t doing much more than sitting there.
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Post by Hypnosis on Mar 30, 2020 18:08:51 GMT -5
I could see a documentary about this happening on a future season of "The Wrestlers", especially regarding the indy scene.
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Post by kingoftheindies on Mar 30, 2020 18:20:04 GMT -5
I saw Matt Cage make an interesting point on twitter. Basically saying that when shows come back fans will be popping for basic moves so the wrestlers should keep it that way. I do think there is merit in that the hiatus could cause wrestlers to go back to basics
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Post by timelimitdraw on Mar 30, 2020 18:59:25 GMT -5
There will be a lot more scrutiny placed on folks touring internationally, especially if they're not under a contract with a large enough promotion to deal with the paperwork. WWE and AEW (if they ever do international dates) will be able to weather those storms. ROH and NJPW might be able to do so as well. Going to start getting really difficult for any other promotion to bring international folks in for a one-off or a very short tour unless they can find a way to band together to get visas taken care of so you don't have another Speedball Mike Bailey incident, which will happen more often under increased scrutiny.
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Post by Cyno on Mar 30, 2020 19:21:12 GMT -5
There was an indie renaissance the past couple of years and sadly this pandemic threatens to completely crush it. Bigger companies like WWE, AEW, New Japan, etc. will be hurt but should make it out of this alright. But the smaller ones who don't have wealthy backers are going to feel the pain. And likely go out of business.
I think it will bounce back eventually. New promotions will take the place of the fallen ones. And there's a steady supply of indie wrestlers willing to put the work in, but it won't be overnight.
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JoDaNa1281
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Post by JoDaNa1281 on Mar 30, 2020 19:33:53 GMT -5
with all the reports of wrestlers upset that WrestleMania is going forward as planned(and will since it's taped), I could see a lot of wrestlers up and leaving. While some indies may not return, some may sprout in their place. I think your PWGs, AEWs, WWEs, ROHs, they'll be fine.. hell even something like a GCW and Beyond will be safe. The other companies, not so much.. but with WWE losing a large sum of money during this, they'll have to let go of their "stock pile wrestlers so no one else can use them" mentality. Opportunity could grow from this. Impact will be safe, too.
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Post by Natural Born Farmer on Mar 30, 2020 19:48:26 GMT -5
It’s going to take awhile for venues and fans to feel safe even when the immediate crisis subsides. Some of the full time indie guys are going to decide it isn’t worth it and seek real jobs or go back to school. Indies running out of one city are going to have to account for the possibility that a spike in ER visits might spark a lockdown and unexpectedly cancel a show.
With that said, a name like PWG or Beyond will still have value, and someday people are going to start attending live events again. Indie wrestling is in hibernation, but I think a lot of it will come back (knocks on wood).
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Post by Starshine on Mar 30, 2020 19:52:08 GMT -5
We're probably guaranteed to see some notable closures. I could see companies like Zero-1 and Big Japan having no other option since those were two companies that were still running shows with fans to cover expenses as recently as last week.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 30, 2020 20:47:56 GMT -5
When this is over (and I'm thinking early 2021 after a couple of false dawns) WWE makes a ton of releases, they've taken too much of a hit to have such a bloated wage bill essentially paying scores of people to stay home (coming off several months of paying hundreds to sit home) these golden handcuffs deals talent have recently signed to prevent them going to AEW further restrains them.
So there's a load of talent looking for work, most of 205, jobbers, guys rarely used and the odd star either their salary is too high for what they bring to the table (Ziggler?) or they're restless and take this opportunity to ask for a release (Banks? Balor?).
Some go to AEW but not all as there's not enough space and AEW would rather push homegrown talent I expect. Japan, Mexico and The UK are unpredictable as it's uncharted waters how each countries COVID economic recovery goes but some entrepreneurs/money marks/con men/mixture of the previous three will see the glut of released talent as an opportunity to start promoting and new indies will rise and fall at a rapid rate. Surely if still running Impact and ROH take advantage too.
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Post by rnrk supports BLM on Mar 30, 2020 20:56:09 GMT -5
The effect on most industries is going to be small businesses going under and the conglomerates with enough resources to weather the storm emerging with even more significant monopolies than before. Unfortunately, I don't see wrestling being any different.
However much this hurts WWE, it'll hurt their competition more, and Vince'll have even less motivation to freshen up his stale act.
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nisidhe
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Post by nisidhe on Mar 30, 2020 22:46:13 GMT -5
I'm not entirely sure about how things will look after all this is over. I would not underestimate the populace's willingness to get as close to back to normal as possible as soon as possible.
That outlaw mudshow in the parking lot? That's probably gone. Someone may replace it, but I think the talent in all cases will be pricing themselves rather higher, knowing that many countries will be offering some kind of fiscal help to those impacted.
The local promotion with a good dozen workers able to fill a bar or a high school gym on the regular? That'll keep going, most likely. More likely is a conglomeration of two or more smaller groups getting together and running a regional tour. That might draw in a few more tickets and improve paydays for everyone. I'll lump BritWres into this, with the added caveat that those with agreements with NXT:UK will likely not be making use of those people anytime soon, at least not in any real capacity beyond a "special attraction."
Any promotions with enough financial backing to see it through will likely do so. Most have non-exclusive contract with its talent so, in the next few months after the danger subsides, you may see some cross-promotion among promotions, in part to save on payroll.
AEW is still pretty insular and is backed by money that knows how to govern its affairs through storms like this. The challenge will be to maintain interest in _Dynamite_ over the long haul which may require introducing some new talents and/or feuds.
WWE is in that boat as well, but has other issues with its booking that COVID-19 seems only to be exacerbating. It will probably require Vince getting yelled at a few times before it sinks in that he needs to take his paws off the wheel.
Impact? They'll be fine, I think. Canada's been well ahead of the curve on the response to this. If they still have a skeleton roster north of the border to work a similar schedule to WWE or AEW, they can pull off similar studio work.
NWA Powerrr? They're in better shape than most as far as what they can do vs. what's expected of them. They can do an empty studio show with closer shots and curtain off the bleachers. Then, when all this is over, go on some kind of tour together and raise its profile higher that way. GLOW? Ditto (assuming that's still running.) It can work, especially if they ramp up the promos and the character work.
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Post by Oh Cry Me a Screwball on Mar 30, 2020 23:29:21 GMT -5
The timing of COVID striking in the lead up to Mania season is what's really wreaking havoc on the indy scene. It would be one thing if this was destroying GCW or Highspots's summer or fall lineup, but cancelling Mania weekend is an utter financial disaster for both the promoters and talent. There's definitely someone that's going bankrupt because north of two dozen wrestling cards just vanished in one fell swoop.
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hassanchop
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Post by hassanchop on Mar 31, 2020 2:14:59 GMT -5
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Post by Xxcjb01xX [PIECE OF: SH-] on Mar 31, 2020 6:10:31 GMT -5
I'd say it'd be in an even worse situation if WrestleCon didnt get almost fully refunded, that probably helped a lot
Really it will factor in to how long this goes. Smaller promotions will definitely need help or they might be forced to close if they were already in deep financial trouble, but I see a lot of Indies being ok that have a far enough reach, your Impacts, NWAs, ROHs, PWGs, GCWs, Beyonds those types.
I see WWE also letting go of the stockpile and releasing talent, they have to at this point, and it's even more ironic that Vince fired employees over the notion like a month before all this shit hit the fan, it feels like some karma if unfortunate for the circumstances
I don't see wrestlers quitting out of germaphobia or fear of virus or infection but there could be some wrestlers who opt to go back to school or a different career path if they aren't exactly huge talents and need money and direction, again, this all factors in to how long this lasts.
I could see this benefitting AEW like some have said because they have outdone WWE when both have been stripped down, bare bones, head to head. WWE has been exposed with their format, AEW for as bare bones as they are have just shown they are the superior wrestling product, it will help eyes on them and even help their live event sales when people come back
Really it's all a big speculation at this point, a big I don't know, it changes literally every day, and everything and everyone is effected in some way or another. In the end all we can do is wait and see what exactly is going to happen. And hope for the best.
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Post by KAMALARAMBO: BOOMSHAKALAKA!!! on Mar 31, 2020 6:20:11 GMT -5
When this is over (and I'm thinking early 2021 after a couple of false dawns) WWE makes a ton of releases, they've taken too much of a hit to have such a bloated wage bill essentially paying scores of people to stay home (coming off several months of paying hundreds to sit home) these golden handcuffs deals talent have recently signed to prevent them going to AEW further restrains them. So there's a load of talent looking for work, most of 205, jobbers, guys rarely used and the odd star either their salary is too high for what they bring to the table (Ziggler?) or they're restless and take this opportunity to ask for a release (Banks? Balor?). Some go to AEW but not all as there's not enough space and AEW would rather push homegrown talent I expect. Japan, Mexico and The UK are unpredictable as it's uncharted waters how each countries COVID economic recovery goes but some entrepreneurs/money marks/con men/mixture of the previous three will see the glut of released talent as an opportunity to start promoting and new indies will rise and fall at a rapid rate. Surely if still running Impact and ROH take advantage too. Yeah, this ain't happenin'. WWE's developmental guys that you'd be talking about don't even total a few million dollars of "wages." WWE makes all of that money with 1/3 of the payment of one Saudi show. They aren't releasing low level guys to "free up cash." They don't need to. Deciding not to use high priced "million dollar guys" who are past their prime? Maybe. Remember this isn't being thought about rationally. This is being thought about by Vince.
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Post by BRAINFADE on Mar 31, 2020 6:24:03 GMT -5
We're probably guaranteed to see some notable closures. I could see companies like Zero-1 and Big Japan having no other option since those were two companies that were still running shows with fans to cover expenses as recently as last week. I think Big Japan are sadly goners. They were still running shows with fans all the way through March and basically admitted that they couldn't afford not to.
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Post by El Pollo Guerrera on Mar 31, 2020 23:30:35 GMT -5
I base this on nothing but my feelings...
The WWE is in a position now where they can't support the same size of production in wrestling they have now without having the current cash coming in. Losing the casual fans will pull the rug out from under them. I think that the WWE may have to shut down for a while, undergo a restructuring, then launch again with a slimmer roster, a leaner show, smaller venues with smaller crowds, and cutting back on stuff I would call "extras" like producing non-wrestling shows.
I see AEW in a better position because they haven't spread themselves too thin yet, plus they are connected to some real money to back them up for a while (but if the Khan Family starts feeling hurt by the economy then it may change).
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