10 Worst Case Scenarios For Wrestling In 2019

9. WWE Destroy The UK Indies

Becky Lynch Midcard
WWE.com

The British independent scene has cooled off over the past couple of years, but it remained one of the globe's hottest territories prior to those new WWE NXT UK contracts kicking in last year. Now, there's a real danger it regresses to the lowly days of old, when weekend warriors were forced to perform to crowds of tens in ramshackle social clubs.

WWE hold the cards. They've already snatched most of the UK's elite talent, and they'll grab more as 2019 progresses. This is only part of the problem, though. The pool will restock itself (independent scenes always do), and high-level departures bring new opportunities for others to succeed, but this can't happen without a suitable platform.

Sadly, WWE can now erase said platforms with a click of their fingers.

Vince McMahon's promotion have six-figure buyout clauses with ICW and PROGRESS, the UK's two most prominent indies. If he wanted, he could end their existence in a split-second, absorbing all assets into his own company... and why wouldn't he do that? It's what he's always done, and anyone with even a cursory knowledge of WWE's national expansion in the '80s should know he's no benevolent benefactor.

Such a move could be great for those under McMahon's employ, but everyone else will be left to pick up the pieces.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.