Why Matt Hardy Thinks Wrestling Industry Was Hotter In The 1990s

Pro wrestling is certainly going through a hot period right now. WWE is breaking records around the globe, while All Elite Wrestling has sold over 75,000 tickets for their All In at Wembley Stadium event across the pond next month. Current AEW star Matt Hardy discussed the industry's current popularity on his "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy" podcast.

"Wrestling is really, really good now, beyond a shadow of a doubt," Hardy said. "I just think it's very different the way you judge the parameters of the entire wrestling industry. I think if you look back to the Attitude Era, it was more ingrained in pop culture. I think people in America, you can even say North America, were much more aware of pro wrestling, and it was cool, it was trendy, but it was very different.

"Now, it is so much larger on a global scale. Sure, we got huge numbers where seven million, eight million, nine million people, how ever many people would watch wrestling on any given Monday night back then. But it was very different. I mean, there was only 40 television channels then or whatever. It was much, much smaller as far as things you could watch and your choices." 

Hardy added that people now have access to thousands of channels and streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu. The multi-time tag team champion pointed out that wrestling is currently consumed in so many different forms. Hardy said the business is not as ingrained in pop culture as it was in the 90s, but more people are aware of pro wrestling around the world because they have easy access to events through their personal devices. 

Hardy — who began his pro wrestling career in 1992 — was also asked on the "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy" podcast if he thought the wrestling industry was now experiencing its hottest period in history.

"I think pro wrestling was hotter in the 90s, overall," Hardy said. "But I think we're at a point right now where it could supersede that if we continue to go in this direction we're going in. I think the rivalry between WWE and AEW, I think the things that both companies are doing, the way they're growing. 

"I think we are able to reach a point in the future, if things continue to trend upward, if they take the same upward projection, I think wrestling can become hotter than it was in the 90s."

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy" with a H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.