Hulk Hogan should attend retiring WWE legend's final match, Eric Bischoff says

Hulk Hogan was World Championship Wrestling's marquee name when the company battled WWE for television ratings supremacy in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Eric Bischoff, WCW's former President, believes Hogan should attend Bill Goldberg's final match.

Goldberg plans to retire from in-ring competition in 2025. The date and venue for the 58-year-old's last in-ring encounter have not been confirmed. However, Fightful Select recently reported that the WWE legend's farewell could take place at Saturday Night's Main Event on July 12 in Atlanta, Georgia.

On his 83 Weeks podcast, Bischoff reminisced about Goldberg's WCW World Heavyweight Championship win over Hogan on Nitro in 1998. Given that the famous bout also took place in Atlanta, the 70-year-old would like to see The Hulkster at ringside to witness his former opponent's retirement match.

"I think because of that night, because of that moment, and because of what that moment did for Bill Goldberg, I think it would be unfortunate if Hulk Hogan wasn't there," Bischoff said. "Even if he's just sitting ringside, doesn't need an interview, don't need a promo, but to not have Hulk there for a match like this would be, I don't know, an incomplete story." [38:24 – 38:49]

Details of Goldberg's last match HERE

Goldberg's 1998 win against Hogan is widely viewed as one of the biggest nights in WCW history. More than 40,000 fans were in attendance at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta to watch the historic moment.

Eric Bischoff on Hulk Hogan's unselfish request before facing Bill Goldberg

At the time, Bill Goldberg was a big fan favorite due to his devastating offense and lengthy undefeated streak. He also played college football for the Georgia Bulldogs, making him a local hero with the crowd in Atlanta.

Hulk Hogan often receives criticism for the amount of control he had over his character in WCW. However, Eric Bischoff thinks the wrestling legend deserves praise for asking to lose to Goldberg:

"It was Hulk Hogan that said, 'I want to get Bill Goldberg over as much as I can,' and volunteered to do business for Bill with Bill in Atlanta. That wasn't my idea. That wasn't Bill's idea. That wasn't Ted Turner's idea. That was Hulk Hogan's idea, because he believed that much in Bill Goldberg." [37:41 – 38:03]

Goldberg has not wrestled since unsuccessfully challenging Roman Reigns for the Universal Championship at Elimination Chamber 2022.

Please credit 83 Weeks and give an H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.

About the author

Danny Hart is a journalist who has been reporting on pro wrestling (WWE) at Sportskeeda since 2017. He grew up as a massive fan of football/soccer and wrestling, leading him to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Before assuming his current role, Hart worked as a football writer at Goal.com between 2009 and 2016. He prides himself on writing original content that is fact-based and highly accurate. Hart thoroughly proofreads his work before submitting it and relies only on credible sources for information.

Hart’s favorite pro wrestler is The Undertaker. He admires the 2022 WWE Hall of Famer’s ability to reinvent his character and remain relevant across his decades-long career. If given the keys to WWE’s creative department, he would bring back The Phenom for a farewell bout against AJ Styles in a stadium full of fans. Not only that, but he would love to have the multi-time world champion’s greatest rivals seated at ringside for the spectacle.

When not watching and covering sports, Hart enjoys long-distance running, playing video games, and listening to audiobooks and podcasts.

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Edited by Danny Hart