WrestleMania 33 will be upon us in a couple of days and it may leave a lot of fans conflicted when the pay-per-view is over.
While some fans are optimistic about the biggest wrestling show of the year, a lot of fans are disappointed with the matches booked, their placement on the card, and what the outcomes may be.
However, one thing that the WWE typically does well that all fans can agree on, are their WrestleMania sets.
Over the years, WrestleMania has come to be known for their incredible entrance sets as well as what typically supports any lights and screens above the ring. WrestleMania 1 was no great stage by any means nor were any of the earlier shows.
Even the Attitude Era, one of the most popular times in WWE history, didn’t have WrestleMania sets that lived up to the claims of the event being the Showcase of the Immortals.
However, the Ruthless Aggression Era seems have been the kickoff point for the shift in how WrestleMania sets were created as the shows after WrestleMania 20 were consistently larger than life and aesthetically pleasing.
WrestleMania 33’s set is rumoured to look like a roller coaster ride and this could look great by the time the big show occurs. But the big question about the WrestleMania 33 design will be if it can match or exceed some of its predecessors.
There have been a lot of great WrestleMania sets and this list will rank the top 7 WrestleMania sets of all time.
#7 WrestleMania 25
Though it wasn’t the 25th anniversary of WrestleMania, WrestleMania 25 still had a simple, yet beautiful design. The big star that stood at the top of the titantron with nothing but the WrestleMania logo made WrestleMania feel larger than life while playing up to the mantra “everything’s bigger in Texas.”
The titantron and lights directly under the WrestleMania logo added to the sense of stardom that WrestleMania is supposed to exude and made every wrestler’s entrance look much more important than they would’ve at other shows.
Also read: WWE WrestleMania 33: Ranking every United States Championship match in the event's history
The ramp was also decked out with a lot of lights that added to the aesthetic of wrestlers making their way to the ring.
WrestleMania 25’s stage wasn’t overly extravagant, but it was on a good enough scale to make the show feel as important as the WWE claimed it was.
#6 WrestleMania 27
Similar to WrestleMania 25, the set for WrestleMania 27 was a simple, but effective design. The word “WrestleMania” hung above the ring and filled with a nice-looking shade of blue that made the word stand out while being juxtaposed to the background.
Unlike most sets where the word “WrestleMania” is just placed on the logo, WrestleMania 27 had “WrestleMania” engulf the entire set as if to illustrate that nothing mattered more than this one word.
Located below “WrestleMania” were four pillars and some lights that were in front of a beautiful background.
Usually, this would be nothing special, but something about the colours they chose and how it meshed with the screen behind it made this set stand out and illustrate a type of grandeur that should be associated with the Grandest Stage of Them All.
#5 WrestleMania 28
The stage for WrestleMania 28 gave it a cool tropical vibe as the ramp was decked out with palm trees next to the word “WrestleMania” being spelt out letter by letter across the entrance stage.
The titantrons were placed behind the word “WrestleMania” resulting in an obstruction of the view, but the entrance screen was massive enough to compensate for it.
At the ring, a large hut like structure sat at the top of all lights, screens and the Hell in A Cell cage that hung above the ring. The hut at the top had the WrestleMania 28 symbol on all four sides and the pillars that supported the structure were also designed to emulate palm trees.
The pillars may have sucked for the fans in attendance who were seated in its general direction, but it still added a bit more style to what was a great WrestleMania stage.
#4 WrestleMania 30
While many fans have mixed feelings about the matches that took place at WrestleMania 30, the set was something that most fans can agree was enjoyable.
The pay-per-view took place in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana and the WWE made sure to integrate that into their WrestleMania set design. The purple and gold colours surrounding the WrestleMania logo helped to give it some authenticity as an event taking place in New Orleans.
This was the 30th WrestleMania to ever take place and the WWE would go out of their way to remind fans of that with the roman numeral “XXX.”
The word “WrestleMania” was above the roman numerals so it added to the look of the set, but one of the best parts about the WrestleMania 30 design was the inclusion of a large symbol above the word “WrestleMania;” a symbol that can only be described as stretched-out fleur-de-lis; a symbol commonly associated with New Orleans.
A great design for a show that will go down in history for more than a few reasons.
#3 WrestleMania 24
Another great WrestleMania set was the one for WrestleMania 24; where the WWE will attempt to exceed their design in the Citrus Bowl with something resembling a roller coaster. But before they wanted the Ultimate Thrill Ride, they went with a smaller, yet grander set for the 2008 show.
The entrance set was a beautiful mix of blue, white, and yellow neon colors in what looked like something reminiscent of a building with a great view as palm tree were on the side of the titantrons and video screens while the word “WrestleMania” was spelled out on two sides of a pillar that seemed to be on top of a miniature sun.
Above the ring was what seemed like a hut or canopy with the WrestleMania logo above the lights, display screens, and other Titantrons.
This wasn’t the biggest design nor was it the smallest, but it was definitely a memorable one.
#2 WrestleMania 26
The design for the set of WrestleMania 26 was probably one of the largest sets they ever produced as well as one of the best.
The WrestleMania logo wasn’t as upfront as it normally is, but the scale of the titantron and video screens more than made up for it. The design for the titantron could only be likened to the Mesoamerican step-pyramid known as El Castillo in Mexico as the square-like display screens decrease in size as the reach the top of the construction.
Above the ring was a construction of lights and display screens that helped some of the fans higher up see the event take place.
However, the design of the support pillars was so slim that it didn’t obstruct the view of fans in attendance as much as future support pillars would. In fact, while the main stage resembled a step-pyramid, the support for the display screens and the light resembled a hollow pyramid with a classic design.
A great design that only helped to enhance a good show.
#1 WrestleMania 29
It’s a shame that one of the greatest WrestleMania stages was built for what many consider one of the worst WrestleManias of all time, but the facts are the facts.
The WWE went all out transforming the MetLife Stadium into a beautiful entrance stage that not only was on a larger scale than any stage they’ve ever constructed, but it paid homage to the state that meant a lot to a lot of wrestlers over the years.
Though the show took place in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the entire stage was based solely on New York City and it looked great.
The actual entrance stage was engulfed by the massive Brooklyn Bridge replica the WWE created which had pictures and displays reminiscent of the New York Skyline at the top of the replica.
The level of detail that went into making MetLife Stadium feel like a miniature New York was incredible and that was only the entrance stage and the Titantron. In the ring, the WWE did a similar move to WrestleMania 28 as they outfitted the ring with a structure at the top of all the lights and screens.
But what really made it stand out from WrestleMania 28 were the supporting pillars designed to look like buildings, the skyscrapers with the WrestleMania logos, and the Statue of Liberty replica which sat at the top of it.
It’s a shame that the pay-per-view wasn’t a good as the set design because it would’ve made for a great show, a great set, and a great crowd. Despite this, WrestleMania 29 will go down in history for two positive reasons. One, for being one of the most profitable WrestleManias of all time, and for the greatest WrestleMania set of all time.
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