As a fan of the form of entertainment known as professional wrestling, this topic is something I've pondered for a little while. Pro wrestling, consisting of scripted matches where "good guy" wrestlers (called "babyfaces") fight "bad guy" wrestlers (called "heels"), is a unique form of entertainment that combines the athleticism of sports with the over-the-top drama and theatrics of plays or performance art. Rather than actually trying to fight and hurt each other into submission (as in Mixed Martial Arts), pro wrestling is all about the drama of matches as the wrestlers try to make it LOOK like they're hurting each other, but with the real intention of conveying a dramatic, athletic fight in the ring and telling stories of feuds and conflicts between the babyfaces and heels. It originated in travelling carnivals of the 19th century, as strongman wrestlers would be scripted to dominate challengers in scripted wrestling "matches," but as the world of media developed, it has today become a multi-million dollar industry that has become widely known as a "male soap opera," so to speak, and has carved its niche in the entertainment world.
However, in OTL, there are only three main parts of the world where pro wrestling is close to being a mainstream, popular form of entertainment. They are:
1. The United States/Canada (both countries have long shared the same market). In the early 20th century, the carnival entertainment of olden times evolved into an embryonic form of the arena-filling spectacle it would become. It would be in the 1950's, with the advent of telivision, that American pro wrestling would experience its first boom, with the first major wrestling star being Gorgeous George, who shocked and outraged fans with his outrageous and extravagant character and dandified, almost effeminate mannerisms that was a loud contrast to the culture of post-WWII America. For a long time, North American pro wrestling was largely divided by regions, until the 1980's, when Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation began to expand out of the American Northeast to buyout other American and Canadian markets and become the dominant wrestling promotion on the continent. American pro wrestling would go on to have two major boom periods, first in the 1980's and then in the late 90's, making wrestlers like Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, and Stone Cold Steve Austin household names.
2. Japan. Puroresu (as it's called in Japanese) had been introduced into the country before World War II, but it really began to take off in the 1950's with the rise of Rikidozan, who became a Japanese national hero in the entertainment world for standing up to and fighting American wrestlers, giving Japanese audiences an emotional outlet in the midst of postwar defeat and demoralization (though, ironically, Rikidozan was actually Korean-born, which is a bit of a dirty little badly-kept secret, considering the issues of discrimination in Japanese society). Though Rikidozan would be tragically murdered in 1963 due to a dispute with the Yakuza, Japanese pro wrestling continued to build on his legacy in the second half of the 20th century, booming alongside its American counter part in the 80's and 90's. Today, New Japan Pro Wrestling, founded by wrestling legend Antonio Inoki, is the number one promotion in Japan, with several other promotions not far behind.
3. Mexico. Called Lucha Libre (Spanish for "free fighting") in that country, wrestling first consolidated there in the 1930's following the establishment of Salvador Lutteroth's Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (today known as the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre, or CMLL, which to this day remains the oldest wrestling promotion still in business). It would be in the 1940's when Mexican wrestling would find its first and greatest breakout star, a silver-masked luchador known as El Santo, whose mystique and athleticism in the ring quickly made him a hero among Mexican wrestling fans, who embraced his character as a hero of the common man and a courageous fighter for justice. When El Santo passed away in 1984, hordes of people flocked to his funeral to pay tribute in what many have called one of the biggest funerals in Mexican history. Today, Lucha Libre remains a staple of Mexican culture, conveying a unique style of pro wrestling that emphasizes a high-flying, fast-paced, acrobatic style of in-ring competition.
But aside from these three countries, pro wrestling doesn't have that much popularity in the rest of the world. In Western Europe and Australia, there are a few small promotions (particularly in the U.K. and Germany), but they don't enjoy as much mainstream appeal, and in any event, wrestling fandom in that region tends to be dominated by American wrestling companies like World Wrestling Entertainmant (formerly known as the World Wrestling Federation). South Korea has a fledgling wrestling industry, but it isn't quite well known, and similarly to Europe with American wrestling, has heavy Japanese influence. And in major potential markets like Russia or China, pro wrestling is virtually unknown, though foreign promotions have attempted to penetrate those markets in recent years.
So, I challenge you to change this. Make professional wrestling a more mainstream form of entertainment in places where it does not in OTL enjoy as much broad fandom. Whether it's Europe (either one country or the entire continent), Russia, China, India, Africa, South America, Australia, or any corner of the world you can think of, how can pro wrestling catch on and become a popular, home-grown form of entertainment, as it is in North America, Mexico, and Japan IOTL? What would be necessary to bring about the cultural changes in which it could become popular?
However, in OTL, there are only three main parts of the world where pro wrestling is close to being a mainstream, popular form of entertainment. They are:
1. The United States/Canada (both countries have long shared the same market). In the early 20th century, the carnival entertainment of olden times evolved into an embryonic form of the arena-filling spectacle it would become. It would be in the 1950's, with the advent of telivision, that American pro wrestling would experience its first boom, with the first major wrestling star being Gorgeous George, who shocked and outraged fans with his outrageous and extravagant character and dandified, almost effeminate mannerisms that was a loud contrast to the culture of post-WWII America. For a long time, North American pro wrestling was largely divided by regions, until the 1980's, when Vince McMahon's World Wrestling Federation began to expand out of the American Northeast to buyout other American and Canadian markets and become the dominant wrestling promotion on the continent. American pro wrestling would go on to have two major boom periods, first in the 1980's and then in the late 90's, making wrestlers like Hulk Hogan, Andre the Giant, and Stone Cold Steve Austin household names.
2. Japan. Puroresu (as it's called in Japanese) had been introduced into the country before World War II, but it really began to take off in the 1950's with the rise of Rikidozan, who became a Japanese national hero in the entertainment world for standing up to and fighting American wrestlers, giving Japanese audiences an emotional outlet in the midst of postwar defeat and demoralization (though, ironically, Rikidozan was actually Korean-born, which is a bit of a dirty little badly-kept secret, considering the issues of discrimination in Japanese society). Though Rikidozan would be tragically murdered in 1963 due to a dispute with the Yakuza, Japanese pro wrestling continued to build on his legacy in the second half of the 20th century, booming alongside its American counter part in the 80's and 90's. Today, New Japan Pro Wrestling, founded by wrestling legend Antonio Inoki, is the number one promotion in Japan, with several other promotions not far behind.
3. Mexico. Called Lucha Libre (Spanish for "free fighting") in that country, wrestling first consolidated there in the 1930's following the establishment of Salvador Lutteroth's Empresa Mexicana de Lucha Libre (today known as the Consejo Mundial de Lucha Libre, or CMLL, which to this day remains the oldest wrestling promotion still in business). It would be in the 1940's when Mexican wrestling would find its first and greatest breakout star, a silver-masked luchador known as El Santo, whose mystique and athleticism in the ring quickly made him a hero among Mexican wrestling fans, who embraced his character as a hero of the common man and a courageous fighter for justice. When El Santo passed away in 1984, hordes of people flocked to his funeral to pay tribute in what many have called one of the biggest funerals in Mexican history. Today, Lucha Libre remains a staple of Mexican culture, conveying a unique style of pro wrestling that emphasizes a high-flying, fast-paced, acrobatic style of in-ring competition.
But aside from these three countries, pro wrestling doesn't have that much popularity in the rest of the world. In Western Europe and Australia, there are a few small promotions (particularly in the U.K. and Germany), but they don't enjoy as much mainstream appeal, and in any event, wrestling fandom in that region tends to be dominated by American wrestling companies like World Wrestling Entertainmant (formerly known as the World Wrestling Federation). South Korea has a fledgling wrestling industry, but it isn't quite well known, and similarly to Europe with American wrestling, has heavy Japanese influence. And in major potential markets like Russia or China, pro wrestling is virtually unknown, though foreign promotions have attempted to penetrate those markets in recent years.
So, I challenge you to change this. Make professional wrestling a more mainstream form of entertainment in places where it does not in OTL enjoy as much broad fandom. Whether it's Europe (either one country or the entire continent), Russia, China, India, Africa, South America, Australia, or any corner of the world you can think of, how can pro wrestling catch on and become a popular, home-grown form of entertainment, as it is in North America, Mexico, and Japan IOTL? What would be necessary to bring about the cultural changes in which it could become popular?
