Monday saw a big announcement from WWE. WrestleMania 37 will take place in SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. It’s not a huge surprise, as the minute the Rams decided to build an immense domed stadium in the Los Angeles area, we knew WrestleMania would come there as soon as possible. It’s still great news for WWE fans on the West Coast, and for those of us that are pretty bored with seeing WrestleMania in the same old places.
With all due respect to New Orleans, Florida & New Jersey, it’d be nice to see WrestleMania held somewhere else. Today, we look at five places that I’d like to see host WrestleMania.
5. Minneapolis
https://youtu.be/1jPDZVC1p9Y
I can hear you all saying “But it’s cold up there! Like, all the time!”. Yeah, that’s true. Not a problem, however. U.S. Bank Stadium was built in 2016 & holds 66,000 people for football purposes. The 2019 NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four packed 72,711 into the venue. It’s a cool looking stadium on television & fits WWE’s requirements for holding a WrestleMania. The 2020 NCAA Division 1 Wrestling Championships will take place there in March, so WWE could still have the first professional wrestling event there.
I feel like this would be the perfect place to hold WrestleMania whatever year Brock Lesnar decides to retire. That could be a long time from now, he makes a ton of money for a few matches a year. Still, it makes sense for the University of Minnesota product to have his final match in a gigantic stadium in Minneapolis.
4. Las Vegas
Vegas went several decades without a major pro sports team, and now it’ll have two. The Raiders will be moving into the brand new Allegiant Stadium for the 2020 NFL season, and it looks just as fun as all the other new domed stadiums out there. One figures it’s only a matter of time before WWE goes Vegas, right? Las Vegas hosted several editions of WCW’s Halloween Havoc event, and if I remember correctly, CM Punk’s pipe bomb promo took place in Sin City.
AEW seems to be establishing a Las Vegas tradition of their own with the annual Double or Nothing event in May. So why wouldn’t WWE come in and fill up Allegiant Stadium just to show those ham n’ eggers that have to settle for running in a casino?
3. Montreal
Canada hasn’t hosted a WrestleMania since X8 in 2002. That’s a wee bit ridiculous, no? The North has some of the most die hard wrestling fans in the world, and they’ve been loyal to WWE since the days of President Jack Tunney. WrestleMania still holds the record for the most attended event in SkyDome, and the building now known as Rogers Centre is undergoing some renovations to keep it viable into the next decade.
Yeah, WrestleMania will probably go to Toronto if it heads back north of the border. However, I’m sticking Montreal on the list instead since they’ve never gotten to host one. Venue is an issue, but they’re going to put a retractable roof on Olympic Stadium in time for the 2026 World Cup. Other improvements could make Le Stade WrestleMania-worthy. Montreal deserves it after all WWE has put them through.
2. London
One of my favorite wrestling events I’ve ever watched was SummerSlam 1992. Something about that atmosphere inside Wembley Stadium made a good event great. That seems to be a trend with a lot of wrestling shows I’ve seen from across the pond, and I’m sure WrestleMania would be no different. The main hurdle is the time difference, but night-time Premier League matches start at 12:30 PM Eastern time and people in the US seem cool with that. Heck, the idea of WrestleMania wrapping up around 6 PM instead of 1 AM sounds pretty good to me!
London has more than enough football stadiums to host WrestleMania. I would put Tottenham’s at the top of the list because it’s the newest, has all the latest technology & anything WWE could desire. Also, COME ON YOU SPURS!
Honorable Mention: Saudi Arabia
You think the Saudi government would be willing to pony up even more money to get an official WrestleMania event in their country? I’m not saying I’d be a big fan of it, but if I was Vince McMahon I’d be a fan of getting even more money out of the Saudis. I’d probably also take a nap because I really deserve one after all these years.
1. Chicago
The Windy City has more than proven itself to be one of America’s best pro wrestling markets. Whether it’s WWE, AEW or the thriving independent scene within the city, Chicago wrestling fans never fail to get out and support their favorites. It has the added bonus of being in the Midwestern United States, a region that hasn’t hosted a WrestleMania since Detroit’s Ford Field was the site of WrestleMania 23. They just announced the site for 37! The last time Chicago hosted it was 22…this is long overdue.
Of course, the main issue happens to be the weather. That didn’t stop WWE from putting WrestleMania 29 & 35 in friggin’ New Jersey, so I’m not buying it. Hold it a week or two later if you’re so worried about it. There has been talk about eventual renovations to Soldier Field or even a new Bears stadium down the line, but that’s years upon years away.
More importantly, I live closer to Chicago than the places WWE usually holds this event.
