The Invasion angle was one of the most exciting storylines in wrestling history. Fans had waited years to see their favourite WWF and WCW stars clash, and when Vince McMahon bought out his competition at the turn of the century, such fantasies were set to come true. The world was excited to see Austin vs Goldberg, Undertaker vs Sting and The Rock vs Booker T. Instead, they got a severely depleted invading force bolstered by key WWF figures Steve Austin and Kurt Angle, while 'Team WWF' handily dominated the vast majority of the war, despite constant infighting and the defection of the roster's various ex-ECW stars. Apparently WCW were originally planned to win the war, setting up their own TV show to rival Raw, and establishing an epic, long-term continuation of the Monday Night Wars. Instead, Vince McMahon allegedly didn't rate the competition upon their arrival. He failed to sign a number of key names including Hogan, Sting and Goldberg, and allowed his booking team to utterly bury potentially electrifying stars such as Diamond Dallas Page. Ultimately, many believe the angle to have failed because Vince couldn't bear to portray his company in a weak light - even if doing so would have proven wildly successful from a business (and entertainment) point of view. Technically the angle extended beyond the summer of 2001, culminating with an elimination match between the two sides at Survivor Series. In reality, however, the damage was already done. WCW were never built up as credible opposition, and predictably lost the supposedly climactic encounter.
