WWE may have people working in Japan, but fans waiting for a full-blown WWE takeover over there probably shouldn’t hold their breath.
During a WrestleVotes Q&A, JoeyVotes was asked if WWE is trying to expand into the Japanese market. The answer wasn’t no, but it definitely wasn’t “get ready” either. Joey said WWE would like to do more in Japan someday, but the bigger push that existed a couple of years ago has cooled off.
“Yeah, I feel like Matt throws this one out there every so often, every couple weeks and usually the same answer. Matt, they’d like to. I know couple years ago it was more of an initiative. Right now that’s slowed down. From all intents and purposes, they have relationships over there with existing promotions that I think are going to strengthen. But as far as them and their footprint and their brand actually hitting Japan in some form, I don’t think anytime soon.”
So that pretty much shuts down the idea of WWE suddenly planting a major branded footprint in Japan. At least for now, the company seems more interested in keeping its current relationships strong than rolling out some massive Japan project. That doesn’t mean WWE is sitting around doing nothing over there.
TC then explained that WWE already has people in Japan working behind the scenes, even if those offices aren’t being marketed with a big WWE sign out front. A lot of that work involves translations for stars like Asuka, Iyo Sky, and The Kabuki Warriors, especially when WWE needs proper captions for social media and YouTube content.
“They have people in Japan who work for WWE in offices that are not marketed or branded as WWE offices that they have there on the ground. And they do a lot of work with the translations. When you would see the Kabuki Warriors or Asuka or Iyo Sky talking in Japanese, they would have people there being able to translate what is being said so they can put the right sort of captions on the Instagram posts. Or the YouTube post, whatever it might be. So there is a big presence over there.”
WWE is also still watching talent in Japan. TC said scouts go to shows there from time to time, which makes sense considering how much Japanese wrestling has shaped the global scene.
“I know that they have talent scouts that go to Japan every so often to sit in on different shows and keep an eye on different talent. I’ve said here on the record numerous times that if WWE were to do a NXT Europe redo, my guess would be it would be in Japan.”
That last part is the interesting wrinkle. WWE may not be ready to launch something in Japan right now, but TC clearly thinks Japan would be the logical place if the company ever revisits the idea of an international NXT-style brand.
He also pointed out why WWE keeps looking in that direction. Japan takes wrestling seriously, trains talent at a high level, and produces wrestlers who can translate well to television.
“I think that they know that Japan takes the art of wrestling very seriously. They train those individuals very well over there, get them a good start. And honestly, I mean, they translate well to television, and they translate well to what we see today.”
So the story isn’t that WWE has given up on Japan. It’s that the big expansion talk has slowed down, while the quiet work continues. WWE has people on the ground, scouts watching talent, and relationships that may only get stronger, but a major WWE-branded Japan move does not sound close.
Do you think WWE should make a bigger move into Japan, or is strengthening existing relationships the smarter play? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments.
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