Eric Bischoff Says Sponsors Don’t Want Hardcore Wrestling, Explains Why Blood & Guts Isn’t For Everyone

Eric Bischoff believes there’s a reason mainstream advertisers tend to shy away from hardcore professional wrestling, arguing that while matches like Blood & Guts have an audience, they’re not the kind of content most major sponsors want associated with their brands.

Speaking on 83 Weeks, Bischoff discussed the business side of violent wrestling and why promotions have to consider more than just fan reactions when producing that type of content.

“Look, there’s an audience for it. I’m not saying there isn’t.

People like hardcore wrestling. They always have.

ECW proved there was an audience for it.

But just because there’s an audience doesn’t mean there’s a massive audience.

There’s a difference.”

Bischoff explained that television partners and advertisers often view violent programming differently than wrestling fans do.

“Sponsors don’t necessarily want to be associated with blood and guts.

They don’t want to be associated with that kind of violence.

That’s just reality.

Whether you like it or not, that’s the business.

If you’re trying to attract major advertisers, you have to understand what they’re looking for.”

Bischoff stressed that wrestling promotions have every right to produce the product they want, but there are business consequences that come with leaning heavily into violent content.

“If that’s your audience, that’s great.

Serve your audience.

But don’t expect everybody else to embrace it.

Don’t expect every advertiser to say, ‘Yeah, that’s exactly what I want my brand next to.’

That’s not how the real world works.”

While discussing AEW’s Blood & Guts event, Bischoff said his comments weren’t necessarily a criticism of the match itself, but rather an observation about how mainstream companies typically evaluate programming.

“It’s not about whether it’s good or bad.

It’s about understanding who you’re selling to.

You’re selling to viewers, but you’re also selling to advertisers.

If advertisers aren’t comfortable with your content, that’s going to affect your business whether fans like hearing it or not.”

If you use any of the quotes above, please credit the 83 Weeks podcast with a h/t to WrestlingHeadlines.com for the transcription.