NJPW News: Promotion gets big boost thanks to Wrestle Kingdom 12

What’s the story?

According to the Wrestling Observer, New Japan Pro Wrestling’s streaming service, NJPW World, gained 25,000 subscribers in two days thanks to Wrestle Kingdom 12, which was attended by 34,995 people.

In case you did now know…

Wrestle Kingdom 12 was held at the Tokyo Dome on January 4, 2018. The show was headlined by the IWGP Heavyweight Championship match between Kazuchika Okada and Tetsuya Naito.

However, the show's biggest attraction, from an international perspective, was a no-disqualification match between Chris Jericho and Kenny Omega for the IWGP United States Championship. The show was streamed around the world through NJPW World.

The heart of the matter

In the latest edition of Wrestling Observer Radio, Meltzer reported that NJPW World obtained around 25,000 new subscribers thanks to the Wrestle Kingdom. The total subscriber count was also revealed by Dave Meltzer. He noted that as, of January 5th, NJPW World has 95,000 subscribers which are inclusive of the new surge due to the Wrestle Kingdom.

Last year also NJPW World had seen a similar surge in numbers thanks to the Wrestle Kingdom as they gained 10,000 new subscribers.

What’s next?

NJPW concluded their Wrestle Kingdom week with the Wrestle Kingdom 12 and New Year Dash.

The next major show from NJPW is scheduled to take place during the Royal Rumble weekend as the Japanese promotion rolls out NJPW New Beginning. The fallout of the matches that happened at Wrestle Kingdom 12 is expected to unfold at the event.

Author’s take

The number of new subscribers once again underlines the success of Wrestle Kingdom. The role that Kenny Omega and Chris Jericho played in this deserves a special mention.

Delivering quality content and keeping the subscribers around should be NJPW’s major priority going forward. The fact that Jericho is still involved with them is a big boost for the promotion.