10 Major Problems Facing WWE In 2017

10. Filling The Alamodome

Many a jaw dropped when WWE announced that next year’s Royal Rumble would take place in San Antonio’s Alamodome. A gigantic 60,000-seater arena, the building last played host to the event in 1997, when hometown hero Shawn Michaels defeated Sycho Sid for the WWE Championship in the night’s main event. For context, this year’s Rumble drew an attendance of 15,170 in Orlando, and just 13,500 watched the event the last time it was held in San Antonio (2007).

WWE’s attendances have declined across the board in 2016, and they face a massive uphill struggle if they want to fill the Alamodome. It’ll take not only a huge promotional effort, but a near perfect build, and one of the most stacked PPV cards they’ve ever produced. The last thing WWE want is the embarrassment of empty seats at one of the biggest events of the year, and they’ve set themselves a lofty goal for January 29th.

A flat Royal Rumble will set 2017 off to a terrible start. It’s vital that WWE do everything within their power to avoid a half-full stadium, and if they’re able to do it, it’ll likely go down as one of the year’s biggest achievements. Last year’s flat Royal Rumble effectively doomed 2016’s first quarter to failure, and a sparse house in San Antonio will do the same for 2017.