Elimination Chamber Proves WWE's Global Strategy

PLEs are Feeling like Street Fighter Stages These Days

As I write this, I’m laying in my hotel room some 24 hours after I got to witness the first ever “Premium Live Event” (née Pay Per View) emanating from Western Australia. Elimination Chamber, so named after the signature match type, was typically seen as one of the “weaker” events on the wrestling calendar. Though occurring in the high season of WWE known as ‘The Road to Wrestlemania,’ it had typically been an afterthought between the more popular Royal Rumble event in January and the Wrestlemania event in early April.

There’s been no denying that wrestling fans want a WWE event closer to them. Social media is constantly flooded with fans from all over the planet begging the promotion to have a show in their home territories. Over the past few years, there had been a shift to do just that. The landmark, albeit controversial, Saudi Arabia deal opened the door for WWE to offer their signature events as a value add for cities looking to spark tourism. What’s better is due to the nature of professional wrestling not having an off season, there can be multiple lanes of touring that can work simultaneously to WWE’s benefit. In other words: