List of professional wrestling attendance records in the United Kingdom

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
SummerSlam, held at Wembley Stadium on August 29, 1992, was attended by 78,927 fans and holds the all-time record in the United Kingdom.
This article is about attendance records for professional wrestling in the United Kingdom. For attendance records in continental Europe, see list of professional wrestling attendance records in Europe. For all-time records, see List of professional wrestling attendance records.

The following is a list of professional wrestling attendance records in the United Kingdom. The list is dominated by the American professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment which has controlled the industry in North America since 2002. As the World Wrestling Federation, it became the first national promotion in the U.S. during the 1980s wrestling boom. World Championship Wrestling, the main competitor to the WWF during the 1990s wrestling boom, also set several records during their visits. However, all of their events were surpassed by the WWE in the early 2000s.

The mainstream popularity of British wrestling largely declined after the cancellation of ITV's World of Sport in 1985 and Joint Promotions' programs on terrestrial tv in 1988. As a result, all of the attendance records formerly set by British wrestling promotions were gradually replaced in the years following the WWF's arrival in the UK. The WWF's official UK debut took place on October 10, 1989, at the sold-out London Arena in London, England. The main event was a match between Hulk Hogan (with Miss Elizabeth) and Randy Savage (with Sensational Sherri) for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship. The event was broadcast live on Sky One.[1]

A series of live and PPV events, Mayhem in Manchester (1998), No Mercy (1999), Rebellion (1999-2002), Insurrextion (2000-2003), were created exclusively for the British market. WWE ended all-UK exclusive pay-per-views when its weekly programming began broadcasting on British television in 2004. According to this list, 13 events are from WWE's flagship television show WWE Raw and 5 from WWE Smackdown, which since 2005's has been held exclusively in stadiums that typically have a seating capacity of at least 20,000 people or more. Only one of the attendances listed is a non-WWE event, a house show during which is the last remaining record set by the company. All of these events have been held in England, most often in either Manchester or the capital city of London.

Events and attendances[]

Promotion Event Location Venue Attendance Main Event(s) Ref.
WWF SummerSlam
August 29, 1992 		London, England Wembley Stadium 78,927 Bret Hart (c) vs. The British Bulldog for the WWF Intercontinental Championship [2][3]
WWF Mayhem in Manchester
April 4, 1998 		Manchester, England NYNEX Arena 18,514 The Undertaker vs. Kane [4][5]
WWF No Mercy
May 16, 1999 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 18,407 Steve Austin (c) vs. Triple H vs. The Undertaker in a Anything Goes Triple Threat match for the WWF Championship [6]
WWE WWE SmackDown
June 19, 2005 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 17,500 John Cena (c) vs. John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Kurt Angle in a three-way elimination match for the WWE Championship with special referee Steve Austin [7]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 777)
April 14, 2008 		London, England The O2 17,363 Triple H vs John Bradshaw Layfield [8]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1303)
May 14, 2018 		London, England The O2 17,341 Bobby Lashley vs. Kevin Owens vs. Elias in a Money in the Bank qualifying match [9]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 820)
April 20, 2009 		London, England The O2 17,176 John Cena (c) vs. Edge for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship [10]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1039)
April 22, 2013 		London, England The O2 16,603 5-woman Battle Royal to decide the number one contender for the WWE Divas Championship [11]
WCW (Day 3)
March 12, 2000 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 16,318 The Mamalukes (Johnny the Bull and Big Vito) (c) vs. The Harris Brothers (Ron Harris and Don Harris) for the WCW World Tag Team Championship [12][13]
WWE WWE SmackDown
November 10, 2008 		London, England The O2 16,000 Big Show vs. The Undertaker in a Falls count anywhere match [8]
WWF Insurrextion
May 5, 2001 		London, England Earls Court Exhibition Centre 15,794 The Power Trip (Steve Austin (c) and Triple H) vs. The Undertaker for the handicap match for the WWF Championship [14]
WWF Rebellion
November 3, 2001 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena 15,612 Steve Austin (c) (Alliance) vs. The Rock (WWF) in a match for the WWF Championship [15]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 703)
November 13, 2006 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 15,266 Ric Flair and Roddy Piper (c) vs. Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton) for the WWE World Tag Team Championship [16]
WWE WWE SmackDown
November 14, 2006 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 15,000 Batista and Bobby Lashley vs. King Booker and Finlay [17]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1095)
May 19, 2014 		London, England The O2 15,000 John Cena vs. Luke Harper [18]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1276)
November 6, 2017 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena 15,000 The Shield (Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins) (c) vs. The Bar (Cesaro and Sheamus) for the WWE RAW Tag Team Championship
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 807)
November 10, 2008 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 14,925 Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels in a Last Man Standing match [8]
WWE WWE SmackDown
November 11, 2008 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 14,700 Jeff Hardy vs. The Undertaker in a Extreme Rules match [8]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1250)
May 8, 2017 		London, England The O2 14,500 Bray Wyatt vs. Dean Ambrose
WWE WWE Raw
November 3, 2012 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena 14,000 CM Punk (c) vs. Ryback for the WWE Championship [19]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1142)
April 13, 2015 		London, England The O2 13,800 Dolph Ziggler vs. Neville [20]
WWE WWE Live in London
September 7, 2016 		London, England The O2 13,750 Kevin Owens (c) vs. Sami Zayn vs. Seth Rollins in a three-way elimination match for the WWE Universal Championship [21]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1195)
April 18, 2016 		London, England The O2 13,713 Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens [22]
WWE WWE SmackDown
April 19, 2016 		London, England The O2 13,713 Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn [22]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1068)
November 11, 2013 		Manchester, England Phones 4u Arena 13,612 CM Punk and Daniel Bryan vs. Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in a handicap match [11]
WWE Rebellion
October 26, 2002 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena 13,416 Brock Lesnar (c) and Paul Heyman vs. Edge in a handicap match for the WWE Championship [23]

Historical[]

Top 10 most-attended shows prior to the 1980s
No. Promotion Event Location Venue Attendance Main Event(s) Ref.
1.
—
October 28, 1905 		Glasgow, Scotland Ibrox Park 15,000 George Hackenschmidt (c) vs. Alexander Munro in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the [24][25]
2.
—
 (Final Day)
December 12, 1903 		Edinburgh, Scotland Waverley Market 12,000 Alec Bain vs. Jack Carkeek in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls tournament final for the International World's Championship [24][26]
—
May 28, 1904 		Glasgow, Scotland Ibrox Park Alexander Munro vs. Tom Jenkins in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match [24]
—
September 10, 1910 		London, England The Great Gama vs. Stanislaus Zbyszko for the John Bull Championship [27][28]
—
August 10, 1948 		London, England Tottenham Hotspur Stadium Bert Assirati vs. The French Angel [29]
3.
—
January 12, 1906 		Edinburgh, Scotland Waverley Market 10,000 Alexander Munro vs. Ahmed Madrali in a Handicap match; Per the pre-match stipulation, Madrali was required to defeat Munro within 10 minutes to win the match. [24]
Joint
June 27, 1979 		London, England Wembley Arena Big Daddy vs. John Quinn [30]
4.
—
February 9, 1936 		Belfast, Northern Ireland 9,000 Danno O'Mahoney (c) vs. Carl Hansen for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship [31]
5.
—
 (Day 1)
December 5, 1903 		Edinburgh, Scotland Waverley Market 8,000 Jack Carkeek vs. J.J. Miller [24]
—
August 6, 1910 		London, England Alhambra Theater The Great Gama vs. Dr. B.F. Roller [27]
6.
—
September 5, 1910 		London, England Alhambra Theater 7,500 Iman Bux vs. John Lemm [27]
7.
—
July 30, 1898 		Walton, England Goodison Park 7,000 Tom Cannon (c) vs. Paul Pons in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the World Greco-Roman Heavyweight Championship [24][32]
—
January 30, 1904 		London, England Olympia Hall George Hackenschmidt (with Ferdinand Gruhn and Jakob Koch) (c) vs. Ahmed Madrali (with Antonio Pierri and Tom Cannon) in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the World Greco-Roman Heavyweight Championship [24][33]
—
 [[]]
September 10, 1904 		Edinburgh, Scotland Waverley Market Alexander Munro vs. Ackbar Ackmuch in a tournament final [24]
Joint
September 27, 1969 		Manchester, England Belle Vue Roy St. Clair vs. Roy Bull Davis [34]
Joint
October 4, 1981 		London, England Wembley Arena Big Daddy vs. Giant Haystacks [30]
8.
—
May 25, 1895 		Failsworth, England Moorfield Recreational Grounds 6,000 Tom Connors vs. Tom Clayton in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the World Catchweight Catch-as-Catch-Can Championship [24][35]
—
April 28, 1906 		London, England Olympia Hall George Hackenschmidt vs. Ahmed Madrali [24][36]
9. Joint
June 11, 1980 		London, England Wembley Arena 5,500 Big Daddy and Wayne Bridges vs. John Quinn and Yasu Fuji [30]
10.
—
April 28, 1896 		Liverpool, England Hengler's Circus 5,000 Tom Cannon (c) vs. Antonio Pierri for the World Greco-Roman Heavyweight Championship [24][37]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 1990s
No. Promoter Event Location Venue Attendance Main Event(s)
1. WWF SummerSlam
August 29, 1992 		London, England Wembley Stadium 78,927 Bret Hart (c) vs. The British Bulldog for the WWF Intercontinental Championship [2]
2. WWF Mayhem in Manchester
April 4, 1998 		Manchester, England NYNEX Arena 18,514 The Undertaker vs. Kane [4]
3. WWF No Mercy
May 16, 1999 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 18,407 Steve Austin (c) vs. Triple H vs. The Undertaker in a Anything Goes Triple Threat match for the WWF Championship [6]
4. WWF No Mercy Tour
April 2, 1999 		Sheffield, England Sheffield Arena 12,744 Steve Austin (c) vs. The Rock for the WWF Championship
5. WWF No Mercy Tour
April 4, 1999 		Birmingham, England National Exhibition Centre 12,236 Steve Austin and Paul Wight vs. The Rock and Ken Shamrock
6. WWF UK Rampage Tour
October 4, 1991 		London, England Wembley Arena 12,000 The Legion of Doom (Hawk and Animal) (c) vs. The Nasty Boys (Jerry Sags and Brian Knobbs) for the WWF World Tag Team Championship
WWF UK Rampage Tour
September 29, 1992 		Birmingham, England National Exhibition Centre Ric Flair (c) vs. Bret Hart for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship
7. WWF Rebellion
October 2, 1999 		Birmingham, England National Indoor Arena 11,939 Triple H (c) vs. The Rock in a Steel Cage match for the WWF Championship
8. WCW
March 12, 1993 		London, England Wembley Arena 11,500 Big Van Vader (c) vs. Sting for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship [38]
9. WWF UK Rampage Tour
May 2, 1991 		London, England Wembley Arena 11,000 The Ultimate Warrior vs. The Undertaker
WWF UK Rampage Tour
April 13, 1992 		London, England Wembley Arena Randy Savage (c) vs. The Mountie for the WWF World Heavyweight Championship
WWF UK Rampage Tour
April 14, 1992 		London, England Wembley Arena Sid Justice vs. The Undertaker
WWF WWF One Night Only
September 20, 1997 		Birmingham, England NEC Arena The British Bulldog (c) vs. Shawn Michaels for the WWF European Championship
10. WWF WWF Live in Newcastle upon Tyne
April 3, 1999 		Newcastle upon Tyne, England Telewest Arena 10,699 Steve Austin (c) vs. Big Boss Man for the WWF Championship
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 2000s
No. Promoter Event Location Venue Attendance Main Event(s)
1. WWE WWE SmackDown
June 19, 2005 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 17,500 John Cena (c) vs. John Bradshaw Layfield vs. Kurt Angle in a three-way elimination match for the WWE Championship with special referee Steve Austin [7]
2. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 777)
April 14, 2008 		London, England The O2 17,363 Triple H vs John Bradshaw Layfield [8]
3. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 820)
April 20, 2009 		London, England The O2 17,176 John Cena (c) vs. Edge for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship [10]
4. WCW (Day 3)
March 12, 2000 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 16,318 The Mamalukes (Johnny the Bull and Big Vito) (c) vs. The Harris Brothers (Ron Harris and Don Harris) for the WCW World Tag Team Championship [12]
5. WWE WWE SmackDown
November 10, 2008 		London, England The O2 16,000 Big Show vs. The Undertaker in a Falls count anywhere match [8]
6. WWF Insurrextion
May 5, 2001 		London, England Earls Court Exhibition Centre 15,794 The Power Trip (Steve Austin (c) and Triple H) vs. The Undertaker for the handicap match for the WWF Championship [14]
7. WWF Rebellion
November 3, 2001 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena 15,612 Steve Austin (c) (Alliance) vs. The Rock (WWF) in a match for the WWF Championship [15]
8. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 703)
November 13, 2006 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 15,266 Ric Flair and Roddy Piper (c) vs. Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton) for the WWE World Tag Team Championship [16]
9. WWE WWE SmackDown
November 14, 2006 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 15,000 Batista and Bobby Lashley vs. King Booker and Finlay [17]
10. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 807)
November 10, 2008 		Manchester, England Manchester Evening News Arena 14,925 Chris Jericho vs. Shawn Michaels in a Last Man Standing match [8]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 2010s
No. Promoter Event Location Venue Attendance Main Event(s)
1. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1303)
May 14, 2018 		London, England The O2 17,341 Bobby Lashley vs. Kevin Owens vs. Elias in a Money in the Bank qualifying match [9]
2. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1039)
April 22, 2013 		London, England The O2 16,603 5-woman Battle Royal to decide the number one contender for the WWE Divas Championship [11]
3. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1095)
May 19, 2014 		London, England The O2 15,000 John Cena vs. Luke Harper [18]
WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1276)
November 6, 2017 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena The Shield (Dean Ambrose and Seth Rollins) (c) vs. The Bar (Cesaro and Sheamus) for the WWE RAW Tag Team Championship
4. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1250)
May 8, 2017 		London, England The O2 14,500 Bray Wyatt vs. Dean Ambrose
5. WWE WWE Raw
November 3, 2012 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena 14,000 CM Punk (c) vs. Ryback for the WWE Championship [19]
6. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1142)
April 13, 2015 		London, England The O2 13,800 Dolph Ziggler vs. Neville [20]
7. WWE WWE Live in London
September 7, 2016 		London, England The O2 13,750 Kevin Owens (c) vs. Sami Zayn vs. Seth Rollins in a three-way elimination match for the WWE Universal Championship [21]
8. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1195)
April 18, 2016 		London, England The O2 13,713 Dean Ambrose vs. Kevin Owens [22]
WWE SmackDown
April 19, 2016 		Chris Jericho and Kevin Owens vs. Dean Ambrose and Sami Zayn
9. WWE WWE Raw (Ep. 1068)
November 11, 2013 		Manchester, England Phones 4u Arena 13,612 CM Punk and Daniel Bryan vs. Dean Ambrose, Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in a handicap match [11]
10. WWE WWE RAW (Ep. 881)
April 12, 2010 		London, England The O2 13,000 Randy Orton (c) vs. Batista for the WWE Championship
WWE WWE Live in Manchester
November 5, 2016 		Manchester, England Manchester Arena AJ Styles (c) vs. Dean Ambrose for the WWE World Championship

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 1989". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  2. ^ a b Meltzer, Dave (2004). Tributes II: Remembering More of the World's Greatest Professional Wrestlers. Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC. p. 40. ISBN 1582618178.
  3. ^ "Rock Star Gary reflects on WWF Summerslam '92". April 10, 2013.
  4. ^ a b "Mayhem in Manchester". ProWrestlingHistory.com.
  5. ^ Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 1998". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  6. ^ a b Johnson, Mike (May 16, 2012). "5/16 THIS DAY IN HISTORY: TAZ DEFENDS ECW TITLE TWICE ON ONE PPV, ANDY KAUFMAN PASSES AWAY, KAUFMAN PASSES AWAY, BULLDOGS VS. HARTS IN A CAGE, MIDNIGHT EXPRESS WIN AND DEFEND U.S. TAG TITLES ON THE SAME DAY, ONITA BRINGS FMW TO LOS ANGELES, WWF NO MERCY PPV IN UK, VINCE MCMAHON'S INFAMOUS CONFRONTATION WITH BOB COSTAS AND MORE". PWInsider.com.
  7. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2005". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2008". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  9. ^ a b Konuwa, Alfred (May 14, 2018). "WWE Raw Results: News And Notes After Bobby Lashley's Sisters Are Set To Debut Next Week". Forbes.
  10. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2009". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  11. ^ a b c d Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2013". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  12. ^ a b Reynolds, R. D. (2004). The Death of WCW. Toronto: ECW Press. p. 247. ISBN 155490255X.
  13. ^ Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: WCW 2000-01". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  14. ^ a b Pantoja, Kevin (January 3, 2016). "Random Network Reviews: Insurrextion 2001". 411mania.com.
  15. ^ a b "Historical Cards: Rebellion (November 3, 2001. Manchester, England)". PWI Presents: 2007 Wrestling Almanak and book of facts. Kappa Publications. p. 156. 2007 Edition.
  16. ^ a b "Monday Night Raw – November 13, 2006: Brace Yourselves People. We've Got A Running Joke Here". KBWrestlingReviews.com. August 8, 2012.
  17. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2006". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  18. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2014". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  19. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2012". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  20. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2015". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  21. ^ a b Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: 2016". TheHistoryOfWWE.com.
  22. ^ a b c Baker, William (May 5, 2016). "WWE European Tour Attendance Figures, Finn Balor Interview, Reigns vs. AJ Styles Rivalry". ProWrestling.com.
  23. ^ "Historical Cards: Rebellion (October 26, 2002. Manchester, England)". PWI Presents: 2007 Wrestling Almanak and book of facts. Kappa Publications. p. 157. 2007 Edition.
  24. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Lions, Phil (January 22, 2019). "Big European wrestling crowds (1890-1906)". WrestlingClassics.com.
  25. ^ "HACKENSCHMIDT V. A. MUNRO. ANOTHER VICTORY FOR THE RUSSIAN". The Guardian. October 30, 1905. p. 4. 15,000 people visited Ibrox Park Glasgow, the ground of the Rangers Club, on Saturday to witness the encounter between Hackenschmidt and Alexander Munro of Govan, under catch-as-catch-can rules, for the championship of the world.
  26. ^ Wheeler, Jimmy, ed. (September 13, 2019). "Scotland, United Kingdom: 1903-1909". Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
  27. ^ a b c Farmer, Matt (April 10, 2007). "1800's to 1919 7,500+ UPDATED 11/12/09". WrestlingClassics.com.
  28. ^ Faridi, Dr. Salman (September 6, 2020). "The Great Gama Pahelwan". The News International.
  29. ^ Kenyon, J Michael (September 27, 1998). "MAT SCAN FROM THE 1930s AND 1940s..." The WAWLI Papers. No. 273. New York City, New York.
  30. ^ a b c Meltzer, Dave; Alvarez, Bryan (October 8, 2018). "Massive UFC 229 expectations, plus tons of news". Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Campbell, California. ISSN 1083-9593. Everyone in the U.K. for years has used 10,000 as the attendance with the idea Daddy vs. Haystacks sold out Wembley, but the actual numbers for Daddy’s three Wembley shows were about 10,000, a legitimate sellout, for the 1979 show against Mighty John Quinn, about 5,500 for the 1980 show with Daddy & Wayne Bridges vs. Quinn & Yasu Fuji, and 7,000 for Daddy vs. Haystacks.
  31. ^ Yohe, Steve (2010). "A Study of Danno O'Mahoney: The (Almost) Undisputed World Champion". 1WrestlingLegends.com.
  32. ^ Corvin, Tim (2014). Pioneers of Professional Wrestling. Archway Publishing. p. 112. ISBN 978-1480804586.
  33. ^ "WRESTLING AT OLYMPIA". London Standard. February 1, 1904. p. 6. Olympia was specially fitted up for the encounter, and it was said that even that building, vast as it is, would not furnish room enough for all who wished to witness the struggle. The house was completely filled, except in the higher-priced parts; but there were in the "stalls" a number of well-known people. Outside the building, while the crowds were slowly filtering in, some lively scenes took place, as train after train reached Addison-road and dischareed its freight of would-be spectators. In the end nearly 7000 persons were present.
  34. ^ Ogilvie, Steve (December 6, 2017). "British Results 1952 to 1956 & 1960 to 1967". WrestlingClassics.com.
  35. ^ Wheeler, Jimmy, ed. (August 30, 2019). "England, United Kingdom: 1895". Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
  36. ^ "MADRALI'S DOWNFALL". Auckland Star. Vol. XXXVIII, no. 140. June 13, 1906.
  37. ^ Wheeler, Jimmy, ed. (March 29, 2020). "England, United Kingdom: 1896-1899". Professional Wrestling Historical Society.
  38. ^ Barrera, Bryan (June 5, 2017). "WCW The Real Event UK Program [1993]". WCW Worldwide.

External links[]

Retrieved from ""