WWE has big plans for legendary arena during WrestleMania XL Weekend - Reports
WWE is headed to The City of Brotherly Love in less than two weeks for WrestleMania XL Weekend. Now it has been revealed that the company is working on major plans to tie-in to pro wrestling history.
WrestleMania 40 is being held in Philadelphia, PA - the birthplace of Extreme Championship Wrestling. The location is part of the reason why former ECW boss Paul Heyman is being inducted into the Hall of Fame this year.
The company has rented out the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, according to reports from PWInsider Elite. The historic venue was known as the ECW Arena for years, and this is where many key moments in wrestling history went down.
WWE is using the former ECW Arena to host a special private event for OnLocation travel package holders. Billed as The ECW Experience, the event will take place on WrestleMania Sunday. There will be various ECW artifacts on display, and wrestlers will be doing meet and greet with fans.
The ECW Experience attraction will not be open to the general public. This is an exclusive event for fans who purchased the premium OnLocation package. Although Endeavor owns OnLocation, World Wrestling Entertainment has worked with the concierge service since announcing a multi-year partnership in 2022, long before Endeavor acquired the Stamford-based company for the merger with UFC.
WWE working on another big ECW project
The original Extreme Championship Wrestling promotion ran from April 25, 1992, until Paul Heyman closed the company on April 4, 2001. However, World Wrestling Entertainment later acquired the company and launched their own ECW brand that ran from May 25, 2006 until February 16, 2010.
There have been numerous ECW reunions and projects over the years, from officially authorized producers and other entities. Now the company is planning to cover the legendary promotion in their Biography series with A&E.
WWE is currently in the early stages of an ECW documentary that will be a part of the Biography: WWE Legends series on A&E, according to PWInsider Elite. The company has been busy contacting former ECW stars to set up interviews for filming.
There's no word yet on when the ECW Biography will air, however, it will not be in the current season. A&E aired 27 new documentaries during the first three seasons of Biography: WWE Legends. The fourth season premiered on February 25 and contains episodes on Randy Orton, Sgt. Slaughter, Scott Hall, Diamond Dallas Page, and The British Bulldog. The episode on Roman Reigns will air next Sunday.