5 options for the future of WWE's United Kingdom brand

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The WWE United Kingdom Championship Was Announced In December 2016

December 15, 2016; it's a date that will go down in the history of British Wrestling as being one of the defining moments of the industry in this country, as WWE Chief Operating Officer Triple H, would announce a sixteen-man tournament to determine the first ever WWE United Kingdom Champion.

The tournament would take place on January 14th and 15th 2017, with nineteen-year-old Tyler Bate defeating Pete Dunne in the final to become the inaugural champion. The tournament was a huge success in the UK, with both shows selling out and the talent competing on the shows showing the worldwide audience watching via the WWE Network the high-quality standard of talent the UK wrestling scene had to offer.

The feeling of fans following the United Kingdom tournament was one of positivity and excitement about the future of the UK wrestling scene. But now over a year later, we are left with as many unanswered questions as we were when this whole process began. I feel the British Wrestling scene is one of the strongest across the entire wrestling industry right now.

Shows are selling out in venues up and down the country, and we have some of the best talents in the world today performing on our shores. For WWE not to capitalize on this thriving scene while it continues to reach new heights would be a massive blow for the scene in this country, but more so a huge mistake for WWE overall.

With the future of the brand seemingly unknown at this time I came up with five ideas for the future of the WWE United Kingdom brand.

#5 Introduce And Use More UK Talent On WWE Programming

Using more of the UK talent on regular WWE shows would expose the brand to a wider audience
Using more of the UK talent on regular WWE shows would expose the brand to a wider audience

Despite the huge buzz created at NXT TakeOver: Chicago by current United Kingdom Champion Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate, the United Kingdom Championship competitors have not been a regular feature on WWE programming. Dunne has made appearances to defend the title a few times on WWE NXT and even appeared on an episode of Raw during WWE's tour of Europe this past November, defeating Enzo Amore in a singles match.

We've also seen Tyler Bate recently make his debut on 205 Live, while Mark Andrews is also set to debut on the brand next week. Trent Seven and Wolfgang have also both appeared on NXT, while several other members of the brand featured on 205 Live during WWE's tour of Europe last November. But this doesn't signal much of an intent to grow the UK brand. By using more of the talent signed to the United Kingdom brand on WWE programming like 205 Live and NXT, the WWE Universe would be exposed to the UK brands talent, and it would give these performers a platform to build on to help promote the brand ahead of a prospective launch.

Until concrete progress is made and there is further news about the brands future we will have to just accept and embrace the sporadic appearances by the talent on NXT, and appearances when the company tours the UK twice a year. But at this stage that just simply doesn't feel like it is enough.

#4 Develop The Brand More In The United Kingdom On Other Shows

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Defending the United Kingdom Championship on other promotions shows would further develop the brand

This is something WWE has already actively done on a couple of occasions now but I feel they could be doing more of. The only place the United Kingdom Championship feels like it is currently relevant is here in the UK and is the only active WWE championship to be defended outside of WWE. The championship was defended by Dunne at night one of Insane Championship Wrestling's Shug's Hoose Party Four event in July 2017, at the Progress Wrestling Chapter 60: Unboxing Live! 2 - Unbox Harder event in December 2017, and at the Progress Wrestling Chapter 61: Don't Touch Me...Don't...Don't Touch Me event in January 2018.

This has benefits not only for the WWE but for the promotions WWE is working with as well. Not only would their attendances be likely to increase but it gets additional eyes onto their brand and talent. WWE would benefit from this with more fans wanting to come and see the United Kingdom Championship being defended on shows outside of their own, and this could lead to more fans becoming interested in the UK brand itself, attending WWE UK branded shows and helping to grow the demand for the brand.

#3 Defend The United Kingdom Championship More Frequently On NXT

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Using NXT as the home of the UK Championship at this time would really benefit the championship itself

With no real regular home for the United Kingdom Championship, we rarely see the belt appear on WWE programming. The championship itself has only been defended three times on NXT since Dunne captured the gold, with another two defenses having already been filmed for broadcast during February. This just doesn't feel right for me, especially considering the impact of the United Kingdom Championship match that took place in 2017 at NXT TakeOver: Chicago.

In a match that is regarded as one of the best in NXT history and went on to win the 2017 NXT Match of the Year award, Pete Dunne and Tyler Bate put on a match that stands out to me as one of the best matches I've ever seen in twenty-five years of being a wrestling fan. When the match began it seemed the crowd were not too interested in seeing the two UK stars facing off. By the end of the match the crowd were cheering, clapping, and chanting phrases including "UK", "fight forever" and "this is awesome". There was no doubt that by the end of the match the United Kingdom Championship had announced its arrival on a worldwide stage, and the WWE Universe were clambering for more.

WWE's failure to capitalize on the buzz that match created seems puzzling, but they have a great platform in NXT they could use going forward to give the championship a permanent home, and an opportunity with their TakeOver shows to see a regular defence of the championship which would give it further importance in WWE's championship picture.

#2 Hold Regular Monthly Or Bi-Monthly United Kingdom Shows

Holding regular shows in the UK every few months would benefit the brand help it's growth
Holding regular shows in the UK every month or bi-monthly would benefit the brand and help its growth

If the championship being defended on NXT and it's TakeOver shows are not the way forward WWE wants to go then there is an alternative option, which could see WWE hold regular monthly or bi-monthly WWE United Kingdom specific shows. The shows would be promoted and held in the UK, ensuring that WWE's target audience has the opportunity to experience the brand while allowing fans worldwide to watch the shows live or on demand via the WWE Network. If WWE wanted to play it cleverly and maximize their exposure on UK shores they could even agree on a deal to air the show in the UK on one of the countries free to air terrestrial channels such as BBC or ITV.

The shows could take the form of a tournament, with the winner earning a future opportunity to face the United Kingdom Champion, or they could simply follow a traditional WWE live event format, with the main event seeing the championship being defended. Any WWE based show in the UK generally sells well, and WWE could use these types of shows as another way of testing the waters for a regular weekly show. I have no doubt the shows could be a success and would again further increase the popularity and reach of the brand on UK shores. It requires a small commitment in the early stages and allows time to grow the brand at a manageable pace before going full time.

#1 Make A Decision On The Brand's Future

WWE need to decide what their future plans for the brand are
WWE need to decide what their future plans for the brand are

Above anything else the WWE can do in regards to the future of the United Kingdom brand, they need to make a decision about the future of the brand. When the tournament was originally first announced, Triple H himself said in an exclusive interview that appeared on the WWE's YouTube channel "the long-term goal from WWE's point of view is to turn this into a weekly show in the U.K.," but as it stands we are yet to see any further development on this becoming a reality.

The appetite for a weekly show is strong with UK wrestling fans. You only have to look at independent shows up and down the country attracting huge crowds to know that wrestling in the UK has never been more popular. The two nights of the United Kingdom Championship Tournament also sold out in less than twenty-four hours, and I have no doubt that regular weekly shows would sell out every time too, even more so if they were taped in a block like NXT.

With ITV's plans to revive their World of Sports shows all but seemingly dead in the water, the path is clear for WWE to establish a weekly show on UK shores should it choose to. But if their stance has changed on this then they need to be open about their intent for the brand and its future.