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#2 The Ability To Tell Strong Stories
Tournaments also offer a strong ability to tell and weave different stories. Wrestling isn’t just about in-ring action, it’s about the story and characters as well.
There needs to be a defined protagonist and antagonist with a goal in every story. Babyface vs. babyface or heel vs. heel can work, but each character must have a goal other than, I have to win this match. What happens when you win? What are the consequences if you lose?
The WWE Universe was never given a reason to invest into the characters when it came to the World Cup tournament. Yes, there are heels and babyfaces, but there was never a motive given for why X or Y wanted to win the World Cup tournament. There was no arch or story that grabbed your attention. Everyone just felt like bodies who existed for the sole purpose of the Shane McMahon saga.
Imagine if WWE actually tried to push Shinsuke Nakamura; he could've been the cunning and sly heel throughout the tournament. If the company built Nakamura strong enough, the audience would’ve been invested in seeing Nakamura taken down by a babyface. His goal could've been to claim being No. #1 contender for the WWE championship by any means necessary and to get that spot, he had to win the tournament.
Andrade “Cien” Almas could've taken Rey Mysterio out due to the frustration of an opportunity being given to someone other than him. He could've inserted himself into the tournament and set up a Mysterio/Almas singles match at Survivor Series.
There were plenty of ways WWE could’ve used storytelling as a device to enhance feuds, start feuds, and put over characters, and even add dimension to a character – this would’ve been great for Finn Balor as the guy doesn't have much dimension at the moment. However, the tournament was simply treated to get stars such as Randy Orton and Kurt Angle on the card.
