WWE’S NXT Breakout Stars…
June 1st marks the day NXT crowned its first winner,
I look back at the first season’s success.
Sports entertainment is an ever evolving industry that is always looking for the next big star. And World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) is the leader in sports entertainment, with 14.4 million viewers a week in the United States alone. Seen in 145 countries around the world and in 30 languages, WWE is a billion dollar company.
WWE is of course always looking for its next star. As other stars leave the company or become irrelevant to the audience, as fans often become tired of seeing similar matches or the same wrestlers competing with each other for too long. And WWE quickly saw the need for a system to find the WWE’s next breakout star.
WWE has always looked to independent promotions to find superstars or divas to join their exciting roster of talent. And for a long time they were associated with Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), based in Louisville, Kentucky. But in 2007 Steve Keirn created Florida Championship Wrestling (FCW), a Tampa, Florida based wrestling promotion. And by 2008 WWE had cut its ties with Ohio Valley Wrestling and adopted Florida Championship Wrestling as its sole promotion for up and coming stars wishing to pursue a career in World Wrestling Entertainment.