Debuting in 2013, Battleground was placed in the October slot, before the 2014 version of the show would move to July. In 2013, the event only pulled in around 114,000 buys, and 2014 would follow suit by only managing to entice 2,000 more customers to part with their cash. Ideally, a new event title and concept should shake up the attention of the audience, but Battleground thus far hasn't managed to do that. In 2013, Daniel Bryan and Randy Orton pieced together an excellent main event, and it's interesting to note that a more pedestrian Fatal 4-Way top liner the following year, pitting John Cena against Kane, Randy Orton and Roman Reigns, would pull in more viewers. Nonetheless, 2,000 isn't a remarkable jump, and Battleground truly is indicative of WWE's struggle to create Pay-Per-View concepts which fans easily buy into, such as the Royal Rumble or Survivor Series. Those events had something special to offer, whereas Battleground is just a by-the-numbers PPV to pad out the year - fans see through the new title, which doesn't really change much about the show over all.
Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.