7 Huge Problems The WWE Wild Card Rule Has Created

6. Brand Superiority

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WWE

The brand split is a purely WWE concoction, and the wrestlers are interchangeable when you get down to it. WWE went a solid five years without it from 2011-2016, and as we saw during the latest Superstar Shakeup (and its aftermath), the rosters can be in a fair state of flux.

But that doesn’t stop WWE from pushing Raw and SmackDown as separate brands, with each program vying for “superiority” at various points. Granted, this was more of a thing when you had opposing McMahon commissioners and GMs bickering at PPVs.

However, one PPV in particular should stick out like the proverbial sore thumb: Survivor Series. For the past several years, the November classic has been dedicated to establishing brand superiority, billed as the one night (snicker) when Raw and SmackDown go head-to-head. Of course, we all know that that’s bunk, but now it’s even more so.

The Wild Card Rule renders any semblance or pretense of brand loyalty or superiority obsolete. There’s no reason to even tease this sort of thing any longer. But who wants to bet that Survivor Series this November will still be pitting Raw and SmackDown champions against each other?

Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.