Announced today, WWE is extending its developmental system beyond the Performance Center in Orlando, Florida. After the introduction of the WWE NIL (Next In Line) program in July 2021, WWE will develop its talent recruitment pipeline beyond college athletes. The company will extend its reach to the North American independent scene.
What is WWE ID?
According to the press release issued by WWE today:
“WWE ID is the latest in our efforts to identify and support the journey of up-and-coming wrestlers, in turn raising the profile of and strengthening the independent wrestling ecosystem,” said WWE Chief Content Officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque.
Following the 2021 launch of WWE’s NIL program, WWE ID has been constructed to support independent wrestling prospects and wrestling schools with world-class training, development, and mentorship.
Under the program, WWE will provide prominent independent wrestling schools with the WWE ID official designation, with the goal of offering new trainees and existing talent at these select institutions with enhanced developmental opportunities. Booker T’s Reality of Wrestling (Houston), Cody Rhodes’ Nightmare Factory (Atlanta), Seth Rollins’ Black and Brave Academy (Davenport, Iowa), Elite Pro Wrestling Training Center (Concord, N.H.), and KnokX Pro Academy (Los Angeles) are the first WWE ID independent wrestling schools to earn the official designation.
Additionally, WWE ID will identify top independent wrestling prospects with an official WWE ID “prospect” designation and support their developmental journey by providing financial opportunity and assisting with training, mentorship, and development, including access to world-class facilities, best-in-class ring training, athletic trainers, and more. WWE ID will give fans the opportunity to follow the paths of these standout prospects on the independent wrestling scene through curated, behind-the-scenes content, as well as highlights and matches showcased across WWE’s social platforms.” WWE Recruit WWE ID webpage.
How This Will Change Developmental
WWE appears to be seeking to diversify the range and breadth of its talent recruitment, not just focus on recruiting collegiate athletes from a range of sporting backgrounds to train from scratch.
The approach seems reminiscent of Triple H’s previous talent recruitment strategy during NXT’s Black and Gold Era. Various wrestlers, including Sami Zayn, Kevin Owens, Johnny Gargano, and Tomasso Ciampa, were recruited from the independent scene.
However, when WWE recruited these wrestlers, it was after years of grind and years of work on the indies. This approach could allow WWE to identify a range of talented wrestlers beyond NXT to monitor, spotlight and support in their development.
Potentially before their first match in front of an audience.
There are various advantages for WWE, and those specific wrestlers selected multiple advantages. It will likely provide opportunities for independent wrestlers, which are usually only available in the Performance Center and the current model of WWE development.
It will provide exposure for trainees and developing wrestlers. It will aid the recruitment and future success of WWE’s training school partners. For WWE, it means more options and opportunities to secure wrestling talent before the competition.
The Selected Schools
The five initial schools are already WWE-affiliated in some shape. Three current WWE employees are Booker T, Cody Rhodes, and Seth Rollins. KnokX Pro Academy’s founder and trainer is Rikishi, who is under a legends contract.
Mark Hollow, one of Elite Pro Wrestling Training Centers’ instructors, is a former WWE ring-crew assistant and a former student of Killer Kowalski, who also trained Triple H.
The latter school’s alumni include a range of current WWE wrestlers, including Kofi Kingston, Ivar, Tomaso Ciampa, and Josh Briggs.
Over time, there is the possibility of expansion. Various other current and former WWE wrestlers have training schools. For example, Shawn Spears cooperates with former WWE wrestler Tyler Breeze Flat Backs Wrestling in Florida.
Plus, there are other independent wrestling promotions and training schools with a history of providing future WWE wrestlers, like Maryland Championship Wrestling.
Going Back to an Old Concept
In many respects, this concept has been introduced previously. Previously, WWE developmental prior to NXT and FCW was affiliated with various independent wrestling companies, from OVW in the 2000s to HWA in the late 1990s.
Former Head of Talent Relations Jim Ross once discussed the ideal situation for WWE development would be to have various feeding schools throughout the nation rather than one centralized training center.
Mixed Reactions
While there is excitement, there are concerns about how long-term this will impact the US independent scene. Competition between WWE and AEW has already changed the independent scene.
There is concern about how this policy could impact AEW. Yet more widely, what about promotions such as TNA Wrestling, The NWA, and MLW?
Dave Meltzer on X stated,
” It helps them get people signed up and identifies WWE first for prospects. It’s a smart and inevitable idea for all companies in the long run.”
Current WWE producer and former wrestler Shane Helms on X responded to Indy wrestler Nicole Matthews’s sarcastic take that reflects the fear of homogenization of Indy style with the following on X:
“If you don’t want to work on Television, no one is going to force you. Some actors prefer Broadway over Cinema, and that’s perfectly okay. But if you want to work on Television, knowing where the cameras are and playing to them is vital. It’s not difficult to do this while chain wrestling. I’m sure you can do both.” X
Further Concerns
Some fear WWE ID might monopolize the US indies. A repeat of now NXT UK impacted the UK independent scene is a familiar sentiment. However, William Regal, in interviews and his own podcast, denied the intention was to control the UK independent scene.
Instead, the idea was to provide wrestlers in the UK with the best training and safety, to change a culture of “carny nonsense” that Regal claims impacted the British scene.
Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com on X perhaps best-addressed concerns:
“There is already a problem with some indie companies, especially the ones connected to schools that get talent cheap, throwing weight around to prevent talent from working elsewhere. If WWE is going to brand indies, they need to make sure that branding isn’t thrown similarly. IE- expecting a talent to take less money because the company is WWE ID branded or preventing talent from working with other locals. ANY indie that asks you not to work elsewhere and doesn’t reimburse you accordingly for that does not care about your growth. The ID element is a lot better than just hiring athletes, college students, and models, but there are still a lot of questions that I’ll try to find answers to.” X.
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