Eric Bischoff Addresses Cultural Reason Behind WWE WrestleMania 43 Backlash

WWE's decision to host WrestleMania 43 in Saudi Arabia hasn't gone down well with a large section of its fanbase, and Eric Bischoff has analyzed the possible reason why.

Bischoff recently discussed on his "83 Weeks" podcast why fans have been dismayed about WrestleMania moving to Saudi Arabia, pointing to a cultural reason for it.

"WrestleMania is like the Super Bowl. And I'm not a hardcore NFL fan. I don't really start paying attention till about halfway through the season," he began. "But the Super Bowl — I mean, I'm a very peripheral NFL fan — but I will have a plan for the Super Bowl. Most people do. And because it's such a part of our culture, I think a lot of the negative reaction we're getting has a lot to do with our culture. You don't want the Super Bowl played in London or Munich or Buenos Aires. You want the NFL somewhere in the United States because it's part of our culture. It's our history. It's our diet. It's who we are as Americans from a cultural perspective, a part of it. So, there's a resentment that a big part of our American product is now going to be shared overseas."

Bischoff also assessed whether politics played a part in the negative reaction to the news of WrestleMania going to Saudi Arabia. He compared this reaction to the response when WWE first announced shows in Saudi Arabia, drawing parallels between the two.

"Add to that the political challenges that come with this, and you've got controversy," he added. "You're going to get that reaction the same way they got a reaction when they first announced they were going to Saudi Arabia. Same thing happened. So, it's not unexpected."

While many fans have been up in arms, it seems the writing was on the wall as Bully Ray detailed how the switch to Saudi Arabia has been in the making for a few years, while Jeff Jarrett asserted TKO has shown that they care about shareholder value, which explains Saudi Arabia and higher ticket prices.