WWE Live Events Being Used As Tests For New International PLE Host Cities

Published: 2 hours ago by Dave Adamson | Last Updated: 2 hours ago by Dave Adamson

Dave has been a website writer for WrestleTalk since October 2022, having previously written for Den of Geek, among a number of wrestling, movie and television-related sites. Dave has been around the independent wrestling scene for more than a decade, including behind-the-scenes.

WWE

Ahead of WWE Clash in Italy, it has been suggested that the company are using international house shows as tests for potential PLEs.

WWE Clash in Italy is the first Premium Live Event to be held in the European city, taking place on May 31 at Inalpi Arena in Italy.

Forming the crown in the European Summer Tour, Clash In Italy joins a schedule of events that includes episodes of Raw and SmackDown, along with WWE Live house shows.

The subject of house shows would come up during a recent interview with Cody Rhodes on The Rich Eisen Show, who revealed that WWE President Nick Khan views them as a testing ground for potential PLEs, saying:

“One of the things I’m so excited about was last year we went, and we were in Milan, and it was just a live event, it was non-televised. And Nick Khan, president of WWE, has been really good about using the live events overseas as potential tests for can we go over there and do a huge PLE like we’re doing this Sunday with Clash in Italy.

“And in Milan, I told them afterwards, I said, ‘Make some noise for me one last time so everybody back home can hear you. I can tell we’re going to be coming back.’ I love the fact that they’ve not made a liar out of me when it comes to those moments. Because they are rambunctious, energetic and also they’re non-tiring, which is a really great thing in terms of what we do in wrestling, and we try to put on a nice concise show for everybody. But they won’t wear out all night long. They sing, there’s an element of hooliganism to it that’s beautiful, that we don’t always get domestically. And they’re excited to see everybody.”

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Cody would then discuss his opponent at Clash in Italy, GUNTHER, with “The American Nightmare” questioning whether his opponent will be the fan favorite on his return to Europe:

“I think for me it’ll be fun to see if they consider my opponent GUNTHER one of them, because everybody keeps saying we’re going to be in Europe, but GUNTHER is Austrian, he’s not an Italian. So I’m curious to see if it carries over. I don’t think it will.”

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Having been brutally attacked following a victory over Sami Zayn on last week’s WWE SmackDown, Cody Rhodes will no doubt have more to say to GUNTHER on this Friday’s show which takes place in Barcelona, Spain.

A Home For The Big Five WWE Premium Live Events In Europe

WWE WrestleMania, Royal Rumble, SummerSlam, Survivor Series and Money in the Bank are considered the ‘big five’ Premium Live Events on the calendar.

To date, SummerSlam was held in London, England back in 1992, while Money In The Bank would also be held in the country’s capital in 2023.

Beyond this, the United Kingdom has recently seen Clash in the Castle in Cardiff, Wales, back in 2022, followed by a Glasgow, Scotland event two years later. Bash in Berlin would be held in Germany in 2024, with last year seeing Clash in Paris, and Clash In Italy taking place this Sunday.

The quest to host WrestleMania is, arguably, a hot one, with Ireland being ‘well placed‘ for the event, according to Kilkenny Councillor Maurice Shortall in comments made earlier this year. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has also thrown the capital city into the hat as a potential host, although little tangible progress has seemingly been made.

With WrestleMania 43 taking place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in 2026, this follows the January 31, edition of the Royal Rumble, securing two of the ‘big five’ for the capital in the same year.

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