WrestleMania 36 will take place behind closed doors over two days. It's unprecedented, and it's the first time WWE has had to deal with a situation like this. One of the two days will be spent at the WWE Performance Center, where all RAW and SmackDown episodes are currently airing.
While it is a significant revenue loss, and wrestling is never as enjoyable without the fans, it is a problem that may surprisingly benefit WWE in the long run. Fortunately for them, they have been making good profits in recent years and will not suffer too much of a loss. In any case, let's look at the show WWE has put up in empty arenas:
NJPW's Wrestle Grand Slam
Running two shows from the Tokyo Dome in the same year was already a bold move for NJPW. The COVID-19 pandemic, on the other hand, effectively eliminated any possibility of a capacity crowd. Wrestle Grand Slam drew only 5,389 people, or about one-tenth of the capacity of the Tokyo Dome. Furthermore, the event took place during the day, highlighting the arena's emptiness.
SmackDown
Thunderdome/ Smackdown | The original idea for Smackdown was to be an all-women's wrestling show
The atmosphere on SmackDown was unlike any other WWE broadcast before it. There were no reactions during entrances or matches, and the seats in the Performance Center were empty. Triple H began the show by explaining that the Performance Center is typically used for training future talent and assuring the WWE Universe that they wanted to help them forget about the outside world and smile. SmackDown Women's Champion Bayley, Sasha Banks, John Cena, Bray Wyatt, and others spoke live in the middle of the ring in front of empty seats, while Michael Cole and Triple H provided commentary.
Stomping Grounds 2019
WrestleMania 37 was the first WWE event attended by fans since the COVID-19 pandemic put the world on lockdown. However, due to government regulations, the event had a limited capacity. Approximately 26,000 seats were sold each night in Tampa, Florida's Raymond James Stadium. The building has a typical capacity of 66,000 people.
Focus on Great In-Ring Workers
From SmackDown to Raw, WWE was concerned about how the matches would fare with no fans, so the three-hour Raw episode only featured one match. That is completely insane.
WWE/ Photo | John Cena was the first person to point at the WrestleMania sign
Allow the best in-ring workers to do their thing inside the ring for 30-40 minutes while putting on a classic bout. It may seem strange at first, but the best wrestlers can perform well in front of any crowd and will take pride in doing so. Fans at home will soon be focused on the game rather than the surroundings.
This includes highlighting performers like Cesaro, Gargano, Styles, Bryan, and others who can "go." Unfortunately, it means removing stars from television who can't make it, unless you're doing a squash match like Goldberg. Those matches are so fast that no one cares who is watching.
WrestleMania 37
WWE/ Photo | John Cena was the first person to point at the WrestleMania sign
Stomping Grounds PPV 2019 was held at Tacoma Dome in Tacoma, Washington. It sold 6,000 tickets out of a 23,000-seat capacity. There was no global pandemic to blame for the low ticket sales, only poor scheduling that left fans incredibly uninterested in the show. Seth Rollins defended his WWE Universal Championship against Baron Corbin in the main event.