List of WWE pay-per-view events
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Each month, World Wrestling Entertainment holds one or two annual pay-per-view events. One event is usually three hours long and features six to twelve matches. Pay-per-view events are a big part of the revenue stream for WWE.
It is a commonly held misconception that the first WWF pay-per-view was November 1985's The Wrestling Classic, a tournament held at the Rosemont Horizon near Chicago, but the first WrestleMania event, in March of the same year, was available on pay-per-view in some markets. The first two WrestleManias were undeniable financial successes, and after WrestleMania III became perhaps the best known event in wrestling history, the WWF decided to expand their pay-per-view offerings.
The first Survivor Series event was offered on November 29, 1987, scheduled directly against NWA's Starrcade, traditionally considered to be that promotion's biggest yearly event. The WWF informed cable companies that if they chose to carry Starrcade, they would not be allowed to carry future WWF events. The vast majority of companies showed Survivor Series (only three opted to remain loyal to their contract with WCW), and the resulting financial blow to Starrcade was in many ways the beginning of the end for Jim Crockett Promotions.
The debut of the Royal Rumble in January 1988 was actually shown on the USA Network, where it drew the highest rating to that time in the network's history. The event became a pay-per-view the following year.
The first SummerSlam was held in Madison Square Garden in August 1988. These four events - the Royal Rumble in January, WrestleMania in March or April, SummerSlam in August, and Survivor Series in November - were the only pay-per-view offerings(other than the King of the Ring) from the WWF until 1995, after rival World Championship Wrestling had expanded the number of their pay-per-view shows. Initially, the WWF used the In Your House brand, but beginning in 1996 began using other names to compliment the In Your House name (such as Badd Blood and No Way Out), to avoid confusion. By the end of 1998, the In Your House name was nonexistent.
This trend escalated to the point that by 1996, both companies showed monthly events on pay-per-view. Until recently, World Wrestling Entertainment had a once-a-month pay-per-view schedule, which they had from the late '90s until 2003 totaling twelve a year. Beginning in 2003, the company began to schedule "brand-exclusive" pay-per-views, and as from 2005 offered an annual ECW show, with an additional show as of 2006. WWE currently produces 16 shows yearly and now charges $39.95 USD for each, except for WrestleMania, which is $49.95 USD. The pay-per-view events in the United States can be bought through iN DEMAND, Dish Network or DirecTV.
In Australia, WWE's pay-per-views are shown on Main Event. In the United Kingdom, only usually around 8 of them charged for and are shown on Sky Box Office. These are all charged at £14.95 GBP and has no extra charge for WrestleMania like USA does. The other events are seen on Sky Sports 1 free of charge.
[edit] Annual World Wrestling Entertainment pay-per-view events
| Month | Event | Brand |
|---|---|---|
| January | New Year's Revolution | RAW |
| Royal Rumble | All | |
| February | No Way Out | SmackDown! |
| March/April | WrestleMania | All |
| April/May | Backlash | RAW |
| May | Judgment Day | SmackDown! |
| June | One Night Stand | ECW |
| Vengeance | RAW | |
| July | The Great American Bash | SmackDown! |
| August | SummerSlam | All |
| September | Unforgiven | RAW |
| October | No Mercy | SmackDown! |
| October/November | Cyber Sunday | RAW |
| November | Survivor Series | All |
| December | December to Dismember | ECW |
| Armageddon | SmackDown! |
[edit] Notes
- These pay-per-view events could switch from either brand to the opposite brand, for example, Vengeance 2003 was a SmackDown event and Armageddon 2003 was a RAW event but Vengeance 2004 was a Raw exclusive event and Armageddon 2004 was a SmackDown! exclusive event.
- Royal Rumble, WrestleMania, SummerSlam and Survivor Series are joint productions of RAW, SmackDown!, and ECW. These events could also change dates making them occur in a different month.
- The month of March is usually reserved for the flagship pay-per-view WrestleMania although sometimes WrestleMania is broadcast early in the month of April.
[edit] Upcoming pay-per-view schedule
[edit] Non-pay-per-view supercards
- 1985-1992, 2006-Present: Saturday Night's Main Event
- 1988-1991: The Main Event
[edit] Former pay-per-view events
- 1985: The Wrestling Classic
- 1991: Tuesday in Texas
- 1993-2002: King of the Ring
- 1995-1999: In Your House
- 1997, 2003-2004: Bad Blood
- 1998-2000: Fully Loaded
- 1998: Breakdown
- 1998: Rock Bottom
- 1999: St. Valentine's Day Massacre
- 1998-1999: Over The Edge
- 2001: InVasion
- 2004-2005: Taboo Tuesday
[edit] Former international events
- United Kingdom supercards
- 1989: First WWF UK Event
- 1991: WWF at Royal Albert Hall
- 1991-1993: UK Rampage
- United Kingdom pay-per-views
- 1997: One Night Only
- 1998: Mayhem in Manchester
- 1998: Capital Carnage
- 1999: No Mercy (UK)
- 1999-2002: Rebellion
- 2000-2003: Insurrextion
- Australia pay-per-views[citation needed]
- 2002: WWE Global Warning Tour
[edit] References
[edit] See also
- List of WWE pay-per-view events by date
- List of WCW pay-per-view events
- List of ECW pay-per-view events
| World Wrestling Entertainment |
|---|
| History |
| Black Saturday | Monday Night Wars | Montreal Screwjob The Invasion | Brand Extension |
| Current programming |
| Primary television RAW | Friday Night SmackDown! | Extreme Championship Wrestling |
| Secondary television A.M. RAW | Afterburn | Bottom Line | The WWE Experience |
| Television specials Pay-per-view | Saturday Night's Main Event |
| Webcasts HEAT | Byte This! |
| On-Demand 24/7 |
| Former programming |
| Television | Ratings |
| Developmental territories |
| Ohio Valley Wrestling | Deep South Wrestling, LLC |
| Subsidiaries |
| WWE Films | WWE Records | WWE Video Library |
| Defunct subsidiaries |
| Coliseum Video | World Bodybuilding Federation | The World | XFL |
| Talent |
| Alumni | Current roster | Diva Search | Draft Lottery | Hall of Fame | Tough Enough |
