MVP says he ‘invented’ idea for NJPW World
Before New Japan World came into existence, MVP was pushing for NJPW to cater to its English-speaking fans more.
MVP spent two years with NJPW from 2011-2013, wrestling for the company in the early stages of its resurgence. That period saw NJPW start to gain more fans internationally as it became easier to watch the product. NJPW first started to stream pay-per-views and other events on Ustream before launching NJPW World in 2014.
On a new episode of his Marking Out podcast, MVP detailed a meeting he had with NJPW officials where he urged them to find ways to make the product more accessible to fans outside of Japan. MVP felt like NJPW was leaving a lot of money on the table by not having easy ways for international fans to buy merchandise or watch shows.
“Here’s something that is factual. This is an absolute fact — the idea for New Japan World, I pitched to President [Naoki] Sugabayashi long before it became a reality,” MVP said. “I had a meeting with Sugabayashi. He was the president back then. Jado, Gedo, Red Shoes, and Tiger Hattori. And I was telling them, ‘You guys are missing out on a lot of f*cking money. You have a huge English-speaking audience in the United States, in England, in Australia. You’re not marketing to them.’ I said, ‘You guys need a website that has an English translation. You’re not thinking about your audience outside of Japan.’ I said, ‘You need to make your product accessible to English-speaking fans outside the country.’
“I said, ‘You know, what you can do is set up like a YouTube page, you know, but in English, aimed at American fans.’ I said, ‘Pick three matches a week that you want to highlight, put it on the YouTube channel. I’ll help you get two Americans to do the voiceover in English for that match and start feeding your English audience.'”
MVP said he even asked fans on Twitter to let NJPW know how much they wanted more accessibility. There was a strong response from fans who agreed with him.
“So yes, true story. I invented New Japan World,” MVP said. “I pitched that idea to them before it existed. And I don’t know how long it took from the time we talked about it until it actually came to fruition, but I’m the one that suggested that they do that.”
Wrestling for NJPW was a dream for MVP, who left WWE so that he could compete in Japan. He later returned to WWE and is now with AEW, where he recently signed a new contract. He is part of The Hurt Syndicate with Bobby Lashley and Shelton Benjamin.
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated's wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.