The bar for excellent professional wrestling shows in 2023 has already been set, as New Japan Pro Wrestling brought their A-Game for Wrestle Kingdom 17 on January 4th. A massive show full of big title matches, returns and debuts – everyone knew this show would do fantastic business for the company. Now that the numbers are in, we know that this was a record breaking show for the NJPW World streaming service.
NJPW Gets 92,409 Unique Viewers For Live Stream Of Wrestle Kingdom 17
In terms of in-person attendance, NJPW was able to get over 26,000 fans in the arena – which is below capacity, but the biggest audience they have had since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a fight to get the government to allow cheering at an event of this scale, but it paid off in the end – with the old energy of the company returning with the size and excitement of the crowd.
However, it was the global streaming of NJPW World that would break records on this event. In a post to NJPW1972.com, they would reveal that the show had record high live viewership – stating the following.
“January 4 at the Tokyo Dome, a passionate crowd of 26,085 attended Wrestle Kingdom 17. With fan anticipation at a peak for our double main event of Kenny Omega versus Will Ospreay, and Jay White versus Kazuchika Okada, as well as the long anticipated appearance of Mercedes Moné, huge numbers tuned in from around the world as well.
In fact 92,409 unique users were watching WK17 live, with 30% braving late nights and early mornings on a weekday to watch the English feed live from overseas. That’s a record for the NJPW World service since its inception in 2014, and we thank all our new, returning and consistent users very, very much!”
Sasha Banks & Kenny Omega Drew In Viewers From Around The World
NJPW most likely gained a lot of new and returning subscribers with the combination of the return of Kenny Omega and poorly hidden debut of former WWE star Sasha Banks. Banks has one of the most fiercely loyal fanbases in professional wrestling, the type to change up their sleeping schedules to catch her debut for a new company live.
The rest of the card absolutely delivered, but Banks & Omega were the new factors put into place for this event – which combined with the reputation of the Wrestle Kingdom brand is the only clear factor in boosting viewers. These numbers only account for live viewership, with the show having started around 1AM EST. Many fans tune in later on January 4th to catch the action instead, making the actual viewership numbers of the event much higher in the end.
Did you catch Wrestle Kingdom 17 live? Let us know what you think in the comment section down below.
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