Panic Ensued in Orlando After Report of WWE Moving Performance Center to Las Vegas

WWE has made a lot of big moves over the last couple of years, and they seem to be settling into a new way of doing things under Endeavor’s umbrella. A recent news story about the company moving their developmental and training center to Sin City certainly caught a lot of people off guard.

On August 27, Mark Shapiro, the President of Endeavor and President and COO of TKO, led a meeting at the headquarters in Stamford. When the meeting was over, it was reported that he said that WWE would be moving developmental from Orlando to Las Vegas.

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter reported that they “quickly checked and heard back from someone in WWE that there would likely be a developmental system based in Las Vegas, based on the conversation, but it was not clear if it would be one in Las Vegas or two, with the other being in Orlando.” This revelation came as a complete surprise to everyone in Orlando.

WWE has long been deeply rooted in Orlando, where both employees and Superstars have established their lives around the Performance Center. The news of a potential move understandably caused some panic within the PC.

“Immediately after the first tweet, everyone in Orlando was in a panic as nobody had any hint of this.”

Additionally, it was noted that another person close to the situation mentioned that there had been discussions months ago about establishing a developmental system in Las Vegas. This would make the NXT show at the Apex more logical, especially given the recent decision to possibly expand the Apex. However, no further updates had surfaced for months.

One WWE insider reportedly suggested that a few individuals might have been tipped off but kept it under wraps. Las Vegas has been steadily acquiring new sports teams, including NFL and NHL franchises, and is set to gain a Major League Baseball team. Two of these teams, the Raiders and the A’s, were previously based in Oakland. If WWE relocates the Performance Center, Las Vegas would be taking yet another significant sports institution from a different O-Town.

While plans for the move seem to be in motion, there is no clear timeline for when it might happen. There is also the possibility that WWE could operate two Performance Centers, but this would require doubling the staff. Although the talent pool is strong, there are only so many hours of NXT television on The CW each week.

What’s your take on WWE potentially moving the Performance Center to Las Vegas? Does this seem like a good idea to you? Share your thoughts in the comments section!