List of professional wrestling attendance records in Japan
List of the largest attendances in the history of Japanese professional wrestling
The Tokyo Dome , one of Japan's biggest sport stadiums, holds several national and world pro wrestling attendance records . The average attendance for professional wrestling at the Tokyo Dome consistently exceeded 50,000 fans from 1989 to 1999.
The following is a list of professional wrestling attendance records in Japan . The list is dominated by the country's largest promotion, New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW). The company was founded by Antonio Inoki in 1972 and had a long rivalry with Giant Baba 's All Japan Pro Wrestling . AJPW set a number of attendance records during its heyday, especially during the 1990s wrestling boom , however, only three of its shows remain on the list as of 2023.
According to this list, 5 events are from NJPW's flagship Wrestling World supercard event, which since 1992's Super Warriors in Tokyo Dome has been held exclusively at the Tokyo Dome which typically has a seating capacity of at least 42,000 people or more. Only six of the attendances listed are non-NJPW events, with the Weekly Pro Wrestling Tokyo Dome Show being an interpromotional event involving over a dozen Japanese promotions . In addition, NJPW has hosted three co-promotional events each with the U.S.-based World Championship Wrestling , two with the Japan-based UWF International , and one with deathmatch promotion Big Japan Pro Wrestling . All but two of the events have been held at the Tokyo Dome in the Japanese capital city of Tokyo , while one has been held at Sun Beach in Atami, Japan and one at Kawasaki Stadium in Kawasaki, Japan .
Events and attendances
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
Ref.
NJPW
Antonio Inoki Retirement Show April 4, 1998
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
70,000
Antonio Inoki vs. Don Frye
[1]
NJPW / UWFi
NJPW vs. UWFi October 9, 1995
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
67,000
Keiji Muto (NJPW) vs. Nobuhiko Takada (UWFI) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and UWFI Heavyweight Championship
[2]
AJPW
Giant Baba Memorial Show May 2, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
65,000
Vader vs. Mitsuharu Misawa for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
[3]
NJPW
Battle Formation April 29, 1996
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
65,000
Nobuhiko Takada (c) vs. Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[4]
TPW
Battle Entertainment July 23, 1996
Atami , Japan
Sun Beach
65,000
Abdullah the Butcher and Daikokubo Benkei vs. Kishin Kawabata and Takashi Ishikawa
[5] [6]
NJPW
Final Power Hall in Tokyo Dome January 4, 1998
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
65,000
Kensuke Sasaki (c) vs. Keiji Mutoh for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[1]
NJPW / WCW
Starrcade in Tokyo Dome March 21, 1991
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
64,500
Tatsumi Fujinami (c - NJPW) vs. Ric Flair (c - NWA) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and NWA World Heavyweight Championships
[7]
NJPW / UWFi
Wrestling World 1996 January 4, 1996
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
64,000
Keiji Mutoh (c - NJPW) vs. Nobuhiko Takada (UWFi) for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[8]
NJPW
Do Judge!! October 9, 2000
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
64,000
Toshiaki Kawada vs. Kensuke Sasaki
[9]
NJPW
Super Fight in Tokyo Dome February 10, 1990
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,900
Antonio Inoki and Seiji Sakaguchi vs. Masahiro Chono and Shinya Hashimoto with special referee Lou Thesz
[10]
NJPW / WCW
Fantastic Story in Tokyo Dome January 4, 1993
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,500
Genichiro Tenryu vs. Riki Choshu
[11]
NJPW
Strong Style Symphony: New Japan Spirit April 10, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,500
Keiji Muto (c) vs. Don Frye for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[3]
NJPW
Wrestling World 2000 January 4, 2000
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,500
Genichiro Tenryu (c) vs. Kensuke Sasaki for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[12]
NJPW
Battle 7 January 4, 1995
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,500
Shinya Hashimoto (c) vs. Kensuke Sasaki for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[13]
NJPW / BJW
Wrestling World 1997 January 4, 1997
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,500
Shinya Hashimoto (c) vs. Riki Choshu for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[14]
NJPW
Wrestling World 1999 January 4, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,500
Scott Norton (c) vs. Keiji Mutoh for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[15]
NJPW
Battlefield January 4, 1994
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,000
Antonio Inoki vs. Genichiro Tenryu
[16]
NJPW
Wrestling World 2001 January 4, 2001
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,000
Kensuke Sasaki vs. Toshiaki Kawada in a tournament final for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[17]
NOAH
Destiny July 18, 2005
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,000
Toshiaki Kawada vs. Mitsuharu Misawa
[18]
NJPW
Indicate of Next October 8, 2001
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
61,500
Jun Akiyama and Yuji Nagata vs. BATT (Hiroshi Hase and Keiji Muto )
[19]
NJPW
Battle Formation April 12, 1997
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,500
Shinya Hashimoto vs. Naoya Ogawa
[20]
UWF
U-Cosmos November 29, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,000
Akira Maeda vs. Willie Wilhelm in a "Wrestler vs. Judoka" match
[21]
NJPW / WCW
Super Warriors in Tokyo Dome January 4, 1992
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,000
Tatsumi Fujinami (c – IWGP) vs. Riki Choshu (c – Greatest 18) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the IWGP Heavyweight and Greatest 18 Club Championships
[7]
Multi-promotional
Weekly Pro Wrestling Tokyo Dome Show April 2, 1995
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,000
Shinya Hashimoto vs. Masahiro Chono
[22]
NJPW
Dome Impact April 7, 2000
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,000
Shinya Hashimoto vs. Naoya Ogawa
[9]
NJPW
Final Dome October 11, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
58,500
Naoya Ogawa (c) vs. Shinya Hashimoto for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
[23]
AJPW
King's Road New Century 2001 January 28, 2001
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
58,700
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams vs. Mike Barton in a revenge match (televised main event on the pay-per-view's initial live broadcast, promoted on TV)
Toshiaki Kawada and Kensuke Sasaki vs. Genichiro Tenryu and Hiroshi Hase (dark match main event)
[24]
AJPW
AJPW 25th Anniversary Show May 1, 1998
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
58,300
Mitsuharu Misawa (c) vs. Toshiaki Kawada for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
[25]
FMW
FMW 6th Anniversary Show May 5, 1995
Kawasaki, Japan
Kawasaki Stadium
58,250
Atsushi Onita (c) vs. Hayabusa in a No Rope Exploding Barbed Wire Deathmatch for the FMW Brass Knuckles Heavyweight Championship
[26]
Historical
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 1950s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
JWA
JWA Pro-Wrestling World Championship Series (Day 1) October 7, 1957
Tokyo , Japan
Korakuen Stadium
30,000
Lou Thesz (c) vs. Rikidozan for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
[27]
JWA
JWA Pro-Wrestling World Championship Series (Day 2) October 13, 1957
Osaka , Japan
Ogimachi Pool
Lou Thesz (c) vs. Rikidozan in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship
[27]
3.
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 10) August 1, 1955
Osaka , Japan
Ogimachi Pool
25,000
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kin'ichi Azumafuji (c) vs. Jesús Ortega and Bud Curtis in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship
[28]
4.
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 14) August 22, 1954
Utsunomiya , Japan
Josetsu Stadium
20,000
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo vs. Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[29]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 15) August 23, 1954
Takasaki , Japan
Jonan Baseball Stadium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo vs. Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[29]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 35) September 4, 1955
Kawasaki , Japan
Kawasaki Stadium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kin'ichi Azumafuji (c) vs. Jesús Ortega and Bud Curtis in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[28]
5.
JWA
JWA Asia Championships (Day 6) November 14, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
18,000
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Harold Sakata vs. Dara Singh and Syed Saif Shah in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[30]
JWA
JWA World League (Day 14) June 8, 1959
Kure , Japan
Municipal Niko Pool
Danny Plechas vs. Tarlok Singh in a World League tournament match Kokichi Endo vs. Lord Blears in a World League tournament match
[31]
6.
JWA
JWA Opening Series (Day 13) March 6, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
15,000
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Rikidozan and Masahiko Kimura in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
[32]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 1) August 6, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Mitsuo Surugaumi vs. Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[29]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 2) August 7, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan vs. Hans Schnabel in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[29]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 3) August 8, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman (c) vs. Rikidozan and Masahiko Kimura in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA Pacific Coast Tag Team Championship
[29]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 16) August 25, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan, Kokichi Endo and Oki Shikina vs. Hans Schnabel, Lou Newman and Dr. Bob Olson in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the Mainichi Cup
[29]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 28) September 10, 1954
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman (c) vs. Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA Pacific Coast Tag Team Championship
[29]
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 36) September 21, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo (c) vs. Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA Pacific Coast Tag Team Championship
[29]
SKS
World Ladies' Pro-Wrestling Big Competitions November 19, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mae Young and Ruth Boatcallie vs. Gloria Barattini and Rita Martinez in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[33]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 8) July 28, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Korakuen Stadium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kin'ichi Azumafuji (c) vs. Jesús Ortega and Bud Curtis in a Best 2 out of 3 Falls match for the NWA Hawaii Tag Team Championship
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 9) July 31, 1955
Saitama , Japan
Omiya Park Athletics Stadium and Bicycle Racetrack
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kin'ichi Azumafuji vs. Bob Orton and Bud Curtis in a Best-2-out-of-3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 14) August 6, 1955
Kochi , Japan
Sumo Ring
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kin'ichi Azumafuji vs. Jesús Ortega and Bud Curtis in a Best 2 out of 3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 19) August 13, 1955
Kumamoto , Japan
Sirakawa Park
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo vs. Jesús Ortega and Bob Orton in a Best 2 out of 3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA Asia Championships (Day 10) November 22, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Rikidozan vs. King Kong in a tournament final for the All Asia Heavyweight Championship
[30]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 1) April 24, 1956
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo vs. The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[34]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 2) April 25, 1956
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan vs. Mike Sharpe in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[34]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 31) June 7, 1956
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
[34]
JWA
JWA Pro-Wrestling World Championship Series (Day 5) October 17, 1957
Kobe , Japan
Ohji Gymnasium
Lou Thesz vs. Rikidozan in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[27]
JWA
JWA Pro-Wrestling World Championship Series (Day 9) October 25, 1957
Naha , Japan
Kumoji Park
Lou Thesz vs. Rikidozan in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[27]
JWA
JWA World League (Day 1) May 21, 1959
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. Jesús Ortega in a World League tournament
[31]
JWA
JWA World League (Day 2) May 22, 1959
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Jesús Ortega and King Kong Czaya in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
JWA
JWA World League (Day 19) June 15, 1959
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. Jesús Ortega in a World League tournament final
[31]
7.
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 26) September 8, 1954
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
14,000
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Mitsuo Surugaumi vs. Hans Schnabel and Lou Newman in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls Match
[29]
8.
JWA
JWA Opening Series (Day 1) February 19, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
13,000
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Rikidozan and Masahiko Kimura in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
[32]
JWA
JWA Japanese Championship December 22, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan vs. Masahiko Kimura in a Best-2-out-of-3 Falls match for the inaugural Japanese Heavyweight Championship
[35]
JWA
JWA Opening Series (Day 2) February 20, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
Rikidozan vs. Ben Sharpe in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[32]
JWA
JWA Opening Series (Day 3) February 21, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Rikidozan and Masahiko Kimura in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
[32]
JWA
JWA Opening Series (Day 15) March 9, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Rikidozan and Bobby Bruns in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[32]
SKS
World Ladies' Pro-Wrestling Big Competitions November 23, 1954
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Mae Young and Ruth Boatcallie vs. Gloria Barattini and Rita Martinez in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[33]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 2) July 16, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Mitsuo Surugaumi vs. Bob Orton and Hardy Kruskamp in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 3) July 17, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan vs. Primo Carnera in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 3) April 26, 1956
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
[34]
JWA
JWA Pro-Wrestling World Championship Series (Day 8) October 24, 1957
Naha , Japan
Kumoji Park
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Lou Thesz and Danny Plechas in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[27]
9.
JWA
JWA Pacific Coast Championship (Day 27) September 9, 1954
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
12,000
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan, Kokichi Endo and Mitsuo Surugaumi vs. Hans Schnabel, Lou Newman and Dr. Bob Olson in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[29]
JWA
Tokyo Governor Cup Tournament October 1, 1954
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan vs. Junzo Yoshinosato, Mitsuo Surugaumi and Kokichi Endo in an elimination match for the Tokyo Governor Cup
[35]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 1) July 15, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kin'ichi Azumafuji vs. Primo Carnera and Hardy Kruskamp in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 6) July 23, 1955
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo vs. Bob Orton and Bud Curtis in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 37) September 7, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan vs. Jesús Ortega in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the Mainichi Cup
[28]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 7) May 3, 1956
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. Lucky Simunovich in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[34]
JWA
JWA International Big Competition (Day 27) June 2, 1956
Fukuoka , Japan
Fukuoka Sports Center
The Sharpe Brothers (Ben Sharpe and Mike Sharpe) (c) vs. Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA World Tag Team Championship
[34]
JWA
JWA International Competitions of the Fall August 14, 1957
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. Bobo Brazil in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[36]
JWA
JWA 1st Annual World League (Day 5) May 26, 1959
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Lord Blears and Danny Plechas in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[31]
JWA
JWA 1st Annual World League (Day 7) May 28, 1959
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. King Kong Czaya in a World League tournament match
[31]
10.
JWA
JWA Asia Championships (Day 7) November 15, 1955
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
11,000
Mitsuhiro Rikidozan and Harold Sakata vs. King Kong and Tiger Joginder Singh in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the inaugural All Asia Tag Team Championship
[30]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 1960s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
JWA
World Big League May 7, 1961
Nara , Japan
Ayame Pond Amusement Park
36,000
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Jim Wright and Mr. X in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[37]
2.
JWA
Summer Series I (Day 15) August 14, 1967
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Baseball Stadium
25,000
Giant Baba (c) vs. Gene Kiniski in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NEPW International Heavyweight Championship
[38]
3.
JWA
Yasukuni Shrine Festival April 23, 1961
Tokyo , Japan
Yasukuni Shrine Sumo/Wrestling Place
20,000
Giant Baba and Kintaro Oki vs. Tosanohana and Hideyuki Nagasawa in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[39]
4.
JWA
International Competitions of the Fall (Day 18) October 3, 1962
Kitami , Japan
Kitami Bus Garage
18,000
Rikidozan, Kokichi Endo and Mammoth Suzuki vs. Moose Cholak, Art Michalik and Skull Murphy in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[40]
JWA
Summer Series I (Day 18) August 2, 1968
Sendai , Japan
Miyagi Prefectural Sports Center
Giant Baba vs. Bruno Sammartino in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[41]
5.
JWA
JWA International Competitions - Okinawa Series (Day 3) November 5, 1962
Naha , Japan
Asahibashi Square
17,000
Rikidozan and Toyonobori (c) defeated Art Michalik and Chief Big Heart in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the All Asia Tag Team Championship
[40]
JWA
JWA International Competitions of the Fall (Day 14) October 4, 1963
Nagano , Japan
Civic Hall Square
Rikidozan and Yoshino Sato vs. Buddy Austin and Ilio DiPaolo in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[42]
6.
JWA
World Big League (Day 2) May 2, 1961
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
15,000
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Mr. X and Ike Eakins
JWA
JWA International Competitions - New Year Series (Day 2) January 12, 1962
Kisarazu , Japan
Egawa Air Self-Defense Forces Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Michiaki Yoshimura vs. Ronnie Etchison and Rocky Hamilton in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[43]
JWA
World Big League (Day 10) April 29, 1962
Hiroshima , Japan
Civic Stadium
Rikidozan, Great Togo and Michiaki Yoshimura vs. Larry Hennig, Duke Hoffman and Mike Sharpe in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[44]
JWA
JWA International Competitions of the Fall (Day 33) October 22, 1962
Nakatane , Japan
Town Field
Rikidozan, Kokichi Endo and Michiaki Yoshimura vs. Art Michalik, Gorilla Marconi and Skull Murphy in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[40]
JWA
JWA International Competitions - Okinawa Series (Day 2) November 4, 1962
Naha , Japan
Asahibashi Square
Rikidozan, Mammoth Suzuki and Toyonobori vs. Moose Cholak, Gorilla Marconi and Skull Murphy in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[40]
JWA
World Big League (Day 23) April 15, 1963
Naha , Japan
Asahibashi Square
Rikidozan, Great Togo and Giant Baba vs. Pat O'Connor, Killer X and Gino Marella in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[45]
JWA
World Big League (Day 24) April 16, 1963
Naha , Japan
Asahibashi Square
Rikidozan, Michiaki Yoshimura and Great Togo vs. Killer Kowalski, Pat O'Connor and Killer X in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[45]
JWA
Golden Series (Day 18) June 18, 1966
Kawasaki , Japan
Kawasaki Stadium
Hiro Matsuda and Michiaki Yoshimura (c) vs. Eddie Graham and Sam Steamboat in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the All Asia Tag Team Championship
[46]
JWA
Summer Series I (Day 2) July 22, 1967
Kawasaki , Japan
Kawasaki Stadium
Giant Baba and Antonio Inoki vs. Art Mahalik and Jesús Ortega in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[38]
7.
JWA
International Competitions - New Year Series (Day 5) January 19, 1962
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
14,000
Rikidozan (c) defeated Ronnie Etchison in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the All Asia Heavyweight Championship
[43]
JWA
Summer Series I (Day 21) August 7, 1968
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Baseball Stadium
Giant Baba (c) vs. Bruno Sammartino in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[41]
8.
JWA
World Big League (Day 25) June 2, 1961
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
13,000
Rikidozan (c) vs. The Great Antonio in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[37]
JWA
World Big League (Day 2) April 21, 1962
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Michiaki Yoshimura vs. Buddy Austin and Mike Sharpe in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[44]
JWA
International Competitions of the Fall (Day 20) October 5, 1962
Sapporo , Japan
Nakajima Sports Center
Rikidozan and Michiaki Yoshimura (c) vs. Skull Murphy and Gorilla Marconi in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the All Asia Tag Team Championship
[40]
JWA
Golden Series (Day 31) July 5, 1966
Tokyo , Japan
Riki Sports Palace
Giant Baba (c) vs. Killer Karl Kox in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[46]
9.
JWA
World Big League (Day 4) April 23, 1962
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
12,000
Rikidozan (c) vs. Fred Blassie in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NAWA World Heavyweight Championship
[44]
JWA
World Big League (Day 9) April 28, 1962
Okayama , Japan
Tsushima Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Buddy Austin and Larry Hennig in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[44]
JWA
World Big League (Day 11) April 30, 1962
Fukuoka , Japan
Fukuoka Sports Center
Rikidozan, Kokichi Endo and Toyonobori vs. Lou Thesz, Buddy Austin and Larry Hennig in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[44]
JWA
Selection Series (Day 19) June 18, 1962
Hiroshima , Japan
Prefectural Gymnasium
Mike Sharpe and Buddy Austin (c) vs. Rikidozan and Toyonobori in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the All Asia Tag Team Championship
[47]
JWA
Selection Series (Day 27) July 1, 1962
Toyonaka , Japan
Daimon Park
Mike Sharpe and Buddy Austin (c) vs. Rikidozan and Toyonobori in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the All Asia Tag Team Championship
[47]
JWA
International Competitions of the Fall (Day 7) September 20, 1962
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan, Toyonobori and Kokichi Endo vs. Art Michalik, Gorilla Marconi and Skull Murphy in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[40]
JWA
International Competitions of the Fall (Day 39) October 30, 1962
Okayama , Japan
Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Toyonobori vs. Skull Murphy and Gorilla Marconi in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[40]
JWA
International Competitions - Okinawa Series (Day 1) November 3, 1962
Naha , Japan
Asahibashi Square
Rikidozan and Kokichi Endo vs. Art Michalik and Gorilla Marconi in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[40]
JWA
International Competitions of the Spring (Day 13) January 29, 1963
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan and Michiaki Yoshimura vs. Jess Ortega and Tony Marino in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[48]
JWA
World Big League (Day 30) April 24, 1963
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan (c) vs. Pat O'Connor in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[45]
JWA
WWA World Championship Series (Day 1) May 19, 1963
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. The Destroyer in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[45]
JWA
WWA World Championship Series (Day 4) May 24, 1963
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan vs. The Destroyer in a Texas Death match
[45]
JWA
International Championship Series (Day 7) December 2, 1963
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
Rikidozan (c) vs. The Destroyer in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[49]
JWA
New Year International Competitions February 26, 1965
Tokyo , Japan
Metropolitan Gymnasium
The Destroyer (c) vs. Toyonobori in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the WWA World Heavyweight Championship
[50]
JWA
MSG Series (Day 7) March 7, 1967
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
Giant Baba (c) vs. Bruno Sammartino in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[51]
JWA
New Year Champion Series (Day 2) January 3, 1968
Tokyo , Japan
Korakuen Hall
Giant Baba (c) vs. Reggie Lisowski for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[52]
JWA
Golden Series (Day 31) June 27, 1968
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
Giant Baba (c) vs. Bobo Brazil in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Heavyweight Championship
[53]
JWA
NWA Series (Day 7) November 28, 1969
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Giant Baba and Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Dory Funk Jr. and Danny Hodge in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Tag Team Championship
[54]
10.
JWA
World Big League (Day 20) May 11, 1962
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Prefectural Gymnasium
11,100
Rikidozan vs. Dick Hutton in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[44]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 1970s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
NJPW
Big Fight Series March 19, 1974
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
16,500
Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Strong Kobayashi for the NWF World Heavyweight Championship with special referee Kiyomigawa
[55]
NJPW
Tohkon Series (Day 30) October 10, 1974
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Kintaro Oki for the NWF World Heavyweight Championship
[56]
AJPW / IWE / NJPW
Tokyo Sports All-Star Dream Card August 26, 1979
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
Giant Baba and Antonio Inoki vs. Abdullah the Butcher and Tiger Jeet Singh
[57]
2.
NJPW
New Year Golden Series (Day 28) February 6, 1976
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
15,000
Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Willem Ruska for the WWF World Martial Arts Heavyweight Championship
[58]
3.
AJPW / IWE / JWA
Rikidozan Memorial Show December 11, 1975
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
14,500
Giant Baba and The Destroyer vs. Dory Funk Jr. and Jumbo Tsuruta in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[59]
4.
NJPW
Antonio Inoki vs. Muhammad Ali June 26, 1976
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
14,000
Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Muhammad Ali in a Wrestler vs. Boxer match for the WWF World Martial Arts Heavyweight Championship
[60]
5.
NJPW
Antonio Inoki vs. Chuck Wepner October 25, 1977
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
13,500
Antonio Inoki vs. Chuck Wepner in a Wrestler vs. Boxer match
[61]
6.
NJPW
Big Fight Series (Day 23) March 18, 1975
Nagoya , Japan
Aichi Prefectural Gymnasium
13,000
Antonio Inoki and Seiji Sakaguchi (c) vs. Tiger Jeet Singh and Mighty Zulu in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA North American Tag Team Championship
[62]
AJW
Maki Ueda vs. Jackie Sato November 1, 1977
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
Maki Ueda (c) vs. Jackie Sato for the WWWA World Single Championship with special judge Mildred Burke
[63]
7.
AJPW
Giant Series (Day 22) October 10, 1974
Suita , Japan
Expo Land Festival Square
12,500
The Destroyer (c) vs. Abdullah the Butcher in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the PWF United States Heavyweight Championship
[64]
AJPW
Real World Tag League (Day 9) December 9, 1978
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
The Funk Brothers (Terry Funk and Dory Funk Jr.) vs. Abdullah the Butcher and The Sheik
[65]
AJPW
Real World Tag League (Day 13) December 13, 1979
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
The Funk Brothers (Terry Funk and Dory Funk Jr.) vs. Abdullah the Butcher and The Sheik in a Real World Tag League tournament match
[66]
8.
AJPW
Giant Series (Day 3) October 9, 1973
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
12,000
The Funk Brothers (Terry Funk and Dory Funk Jr.) (c) vs. Giant Baba and Jumbo Tsuruta in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWA International Tag Team Championship
[67]
AJPW
Summer Action Series (Day 7) July 14, 1974
Yaku , Japan
General Ground
Giant Baba, The Destroyer and Jumbo Tsuruta vs. Bob Backlund, Bob Roop and George "The Animal" Steele in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match
[68]
NJPW
Big Fight Series (Day 19) March 13, 1975
Hiroshima , Japan
Hiroshima Prefectural Gymnasium
Antonio Inoki vs. Tiger Jeet Singh for the vacant NWF World Heavyweight Championship
[62]
NJPW
Toukon Series II (Day 41) December 11, 1975
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Billy Robinson in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWF World Heavyweight Championship with special witnesses Lou Thesz and Karl Gotch
[69]
AJPW
Open Tag League (Day 13) December 15, 1977
Tokyo , Japan
Kuramae Kokugikan
The Funk Brothers (Terry Funk and Dory Funk Jr.) vs. Abdullah the Butcher and The Sheik in an Open Tag League tournament match
[70]
NJPW
New Year Golden Series (Day 29) February 8, 1978
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
Antonio Inoki vs. Umanosuke Ueda in a Nail Floor Death match
[71]
9.
NJPW
MSG Series (Day 35) June 1, 1978
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
11,000
Antonio Inoki (c-NJPW) defeated Bob Backlund (c-WWWF) in a Champion vs. Champion Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWF World Heavyweight Championship and WWWF World Heavyweight Championship
[72]
10.
NJPW
Golden Fight Series (Day 24) June 26, 1975
Tokyo , Japan
Ryogoku Kokugikan
10,600
Antonio Inoki (c) vs. Tiger Jeet Singh in a Best 2-out-of-3 Falls match for the NWF World Heavyweight Championship
[73]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 1980s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
UWF
U-Cosmos November 29, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,000
Akira Maeda vs. Willie Wilhelm in a "Wrestler vs. Judoka" match
[21]
2.
NJPW
Super Powers Clash April 24, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
53,600
Antonio Inoki vs. Shota Chochishvili
[74]
3.
UWF
May History 1st May 4, 1989
Osaka , Japan
Osaka Baseball Stadium
23,000
Akira Maeda vs. Chris Dolman in a Wrestler vs. Kickboxer match
[75]
4.
UWF
Midsummer Creation August 13, 1989
Yokohama , Japan
Yokohama Arena
17,000
Akira Maeda vs. Yoshiaki Fujiwara
[75]
5.
AJPW
Super Power Series (Day 19) June 5, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
15,200
Jumbo Tsuruta (c) vs. Gen'ichiro Tenryu for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
[76]
6.
UWF
Dynamism January 10, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
15,000
Akira Maeda vs. Nobuhiko Takada
[75]
7.
AJPW
Real World Tag League (Day 18) December 6, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
14,800
Gen'ichiro Tenryu and Stan Hansen vs. Yoshiaki Yatsu and Jumbo Tsuruta in the Real World Tag League tournament final for the vacant AJPW World Tag Team Championship
8.
AJPW
Excite Series (Day 11) March 8, 1989
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
14,400
Gen'ichiro Tenryu and The Road Warriors (Road Warrior Hawk and Road Warrior Animal) vs. Jumbo Tsuruta, Yoshiaki Yatsu and Shunji Takano
[77]
9.
AJPW
Bruiser Brody Memorial Show August 29, 1988
Tokyo , Japan
Nippon Budokan
14,200
Jumbo Tsuruta and Yoshiaki Yatsu (c) vs. Gen'ichiro Tenryu and Ashura Hara for the World Tag Team Championship
[78]
10.
NJPW
Inoki Toukon Live II March 26, 1987
Osaka , Japan
Castle Hall
13,850
Antonio Inoki vs. Masa Saito
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 1990s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
NJPW
Antonio Inoki Retirement Show April 4, 1998
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
70,000
Antonio Inoki vs. Don Frye
[1]
2.
NJPW / UWFi
NJPW vs. UWFi October 9, 1995
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
67,000
Keiji Muto (NJPW) vs. Nobuhiko Takada (UWFI) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and UWFI Heavyweight Championship
[2]
3.
AJPW
Giant Baba Memorial Show May 2, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
65,000
Vader vs. Mitsuharu Misawa for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
[3]
NJPW
Battle Formation April 29, 1996
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
Nobuhiko Takada (c) vs. Shinya Hashimoto for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[4]
TPW
Tokyo Pro Wrestling in Atami July 23, 1996
Atami , Japan
Sun Beach
Abdullah the Butcher and Daikokubo Benkei vs. Kishin Kawabata and Takashi Ishikawa
[79]
4.
NJPW / WCW
Starrcade in Tokyo Dome March 21, 1991
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
64,500
Tatsumi Fujinami (c - NJPW) vs. Ric Flair (c - NWA) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and NWA World Heavyweight Championships
[7]
5.
NJPW / UWFi
Wrestling World 1996 January 4, 1996
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
64,000
Keiji Mutoh (c - NJPW) vs. Nobuhiko Takada (UWFi) for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[8]
6.
NJPW
Super Fight in Tokyo Dome February 10, 1990
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,900
Antonio Inoki and Seiji Sakaguchi vs. Masahiro Chono and Shinya Hashimoto with special referee Lou Thesz
[10]
7.
NJPW
Fantastic Story in Tokyo Dome January 4, 1993
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,500
Genichiro Tenryu vs. Riki Choshu
[11]
NJPW
Strong Style Symphony: New Japan Spirit April 10, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
Keiji Muto (c) vs. Don Frye for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[3]
8.
NJPW
Battle 7 January 4, 1995
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,500
Shinya Hashimoto (c) vs. Kensuke Sasaki for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[13]
NJPW
Wrestling World 1997 January 4, 1997
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
Shinya Hashimoto (c) vs. Riki Choshu for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[14]
NJPW
Wrestling World 1999 January 4, 1999
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
Scott Norton (c) vs. Keiji Mutoh for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[15]
9.
NJPW
Battlefield January 4, 1994
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,000
Antonio Inoki vs. Genichiro Tenryu
[16]
10.
AJPW
AJPW 25th Anniversary Show May 1, 1998
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
58,300
Mitsuharu Misawa (c) vs. Toshiaki Kawada for the Triple Crown Heavyweight Championship
[80]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 2000s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
NJPW
Do Judge!! October 9, 2000
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
64,000
Toshiaki Kawada vs. Kensuke Sasaki
[9]
2.
NJPW
Wrestling World 2000 January 4, 2000
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
63,500
Genichiro Tenryu (c) vs. Kensuke Sasaki for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[12]
3.
NJPW
Wrestling World 2001 January 4, 2001
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
62,000
Kensuke Sasaki vs. Toshiaki Kawada in a tournament final for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[17]
NOAH
Destiny July 18, 2005
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
Toshiaki Kawada vs. Mitsuharu Misawa
[18]
4.
NJPW
Indicate of Next October 8, 2001
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
61,500
Jun Akiyama and Yuji Nagata vs. BATT (Hiroshi Hase and Keiji Muto )
[19]
5.
NJPW
Dome Impact April 7, 2000
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
60,000
Shinya Hashimoto vs. Naoya Ogawa
[9]
6.
AJPW
King's Road New Century 2001 January 28, 2001
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
58,700
"Dr. Death" Steve Williams vs. Mike Barton in a revenge match (televised main event on the pay-per-view's initial live broadcast, promoted on TV)
Toshiaki Kawada and Kensuke Sasaki vs. Genichiro Tenryu and Hiroshi Hase (dark match main event)
[81]
7.
NOAH
Departure July 10, 2004
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
58,000
Kenta Kobashi (c) vs. Jun Akiyama for the GHC Heavyweight Championship
[82]
8.
NJPW
Fighting Spirit Memorial Day May 2, 2002
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
57,500
Masahiro Chono vs. Mitsuharu Misawa
[83]
9.
NJPW
Ultimate Crush May 2, 2003
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
55,000
Yuji Nagata (c-NJPW) vs. Yoshihiro Takayama (c-NWF) in a Champion vs. Champion match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and NWF Heavyweight Championship
[84]
10.
NJPW
Wrestling World 2004 January 4, 2004
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
53,000
Shinsuke Nakamura (c-NJPW) defeated Yoshihiro Takayama (c-NWF) in a unification match for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship and the NWF Heavyweight Championship
[85]
Top 10 most-attended shows in the 2010s
No.
Promotion
Event
Location
Venue
Attendance
Main Event(s)
1.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom VI January 4, 2012
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
43,000
Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Minoru Suzuki for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[86]
2.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom V January 4, 2011
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
42,000
Satoshi Kojima (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[87]
3.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom IV January 4, 2010
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
41,500
Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Yoshihiro Takayama for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[86]
4.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 13 January 4, 2019
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
38,162
Kenny Omega (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[88]
5.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 9 January 4, 2015
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
36,000
Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[89]
6.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 8 January 4, 2014
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
35,000
Shinsuke Nakamura (c) vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi for the IWGP Intercontinental Championship
[90]
7.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 12 January 4, 2018
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
34,995
Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Tetsuya Naito for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[91]
8.
DDT
Tokyo Ramen Show Street Wrestling October 30, 2014
Tokyo , Japan
Komazawa Olympic Park
30,000
Kudo and Gota Ihashi vs. Choun Shiryu and Cao Zhang vs. Sanshiro Takagi and Jun Kasai vs. Golden Storm Riders (Kota Ibushi and Daisuke Sasaki ) in a Four-Way match
[92]
9.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 7 January 4, 2013
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
29,000
Hiroshi Tanahashi (c) vs. Kazuchika Okada for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[93]
10.
NJPW
Wrestle Kingdom 11 January 4, 2017
Tokyo , Japan
Tokyo Dome
26,192
Kazuchika Okada (c) vs. Kenny Omega for the IWGP Heavyweight Championship
[94]
See also
References
^ a b c Hornbaker, Tim. "(NJPW) New Japan Pro Wrestling Results - 1998" . LegacyOfWrestling.com .
^ a b Meltzer, Dave (October 16, 1995). "Muto beats Takada, Warrior Whatever Happened To? Fun, New Jack troubles, legal issues in Mexico, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. The combined New Japan/UWFI show on 10/9 at the Tokyo Dome set an all-time gate record for pro wrestling of more than $6 million. [...] The overflow crowd of 67,000, which included 2,200 standing room tickets sold the day of the show, was the largest crowd for any indoor event ever in Tokyo.
^ a b c d Horie, Masanori (December 20, 1999). "January Wrestling in the Tokyo Area / 1999 Year In Review Part One" . View from the Rising Sun. Archived from the original on February 20, 2005.
^ a b Meltzer, Dave ; Alvarez, Bryan (May 6, 1996). "Hashimoto wins IWGP title, Michaels vs. Diesel at In Your House, world of MMA goes completely nuts, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. Shinya Hashimoto captured the IWGP heavyweight championship from Nobuhiko Takada via cross armbreaker submission to headline the 4/29 Tokyo Dome show which drew the second largest crowd in the history of Japanese wrestling and what is believed to be the second largest live gate in the history of pro wrestling. The card, entitled "'96 Battle Formation," drew a sellout crowd announced at 65,000 fans and a gate that should have approached $6 million
^ Meltzer, Dave ; Alvarez, Bryan (August 5, 1996). "Major changes to WWF syndication, Herb Abrams dies, Kobashi wins Triple Crown for the first time, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. Several of the groups this past week have run free shows as part of fireworks festivals or country fair type of events. The biggest was Tokyo Pro's show on 7/23 at Atami Sun Beach which was reported as being viewed by more than 65,000 fans.
^ "TPW Battle Entertainment - Tag 1" . Cagematch.net . Retrieved August 28, 2023 .
^ a b c Meltzer, Dave (January 10, 1992). "Huge Billy Graham interview, Inside Edition on WWF, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. [WCW/New Japan Supershow II], which will air as an edited pay-per-view in mid-March in the United States, was said to be nowhere near the level of the initial combined show last March. The show drew a turnaway crowd of 60,000 fans. A few thousand seats that were used at the March show (which drew 64,500)
^ a b Meltzer, Dave ; Alvarez, Bryan (January 15, 1996). "World Championship Wrestling turns first-ever profit in 1995, biggest drawing feud in pro-wrestling history as of 1996, Pena and Televisa breakdown, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. New Japan's traditional biggest event of the year, which occurs every January 4th, entitled this year "`96 Wrestling War in Tokyo Dome," was built once again around the same New Japan vs. UWFI matches that set the record in October. This version drew a turnaway crowd of 64,000 fans, selling out nearly two weeks in advance, and a gate estimated at between $5 and $6 million along with a television audience estimated at 14 million. It was probably the second largest live gate in history (certainly no lower than third on the all-time list), was the ninth largest recorded crowd in history and the third largest crowd ever in Japan.
^ a b c d Stern, Karl. "Ultimate History of Pro Wrestling - A Time Line of Every Major Event in Pro Wrestling History - 2000" . WhenItWasCool.com .
^ a b Hornbaker, Tim. "(NJPW) New Japan Pro Wrestling Results - 1990" . LegacyOfWrestling.com .
^ a b Meltzer, Dave (January 15, 1993). "Flair leaves WWF, two World Title changes, Japan update, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. The annual New Japan Tokyo Egg Dome show has, which had its fifth version on Monday, 1/4, has in that time turned into from a prestige factor, right behind Wrestlemania as the biggest card of the year in the world. This year's show did nothing to hurt that reputation as the seventh largest recorded crowd to ever witness pro wrestling--63,500--sold the building out one week in advance to see a show that received raves from everyone I spoke with about it.
^ a b Hornbaker, Tim. "(NJPW) New Japan Pro Wrestling Results - 2000" . LegacyOfWrestling.com .
^ a b Meltzer, Dave (January 9, 1995). "Flash report from Tokyo Dome, looking back at 1994, UFC V date announced, Hogan vs. Vader preview, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. We'll have more details next week. The show, billed as "Battle 7" (because it was New Japan's seventh annual Tokyo Dome show) drew a legit sellout 62,500 which makes it the eighth largest recorded crowd for pro wrestling of all-time.
^ a b Meltzer, Dave (January 13, 1997). "1997 Annual Awards Issue, a look at all the major shows of the year, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. New Japan's annual major event of the year, "'97 Wrestling World in Tokyo Dome" drew a reported 62,500 fans
^ a b Hornbaker, Tim. "(NJPW) New Japan Pro Wrestling Results - 1999" . LegacyOfWrestling.com .
^ a b Meltzer, Dave (January 10, 1994). "Starrcade 93 fallout, New Japan Dome show, catching up on news". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. Well, the good of the promotion won out this time, however an ominous note was the failure of the show to sellout, the first time this has been the case for a New Japan Dome show since the first one in 1989. The crowd was announced at 62,000, although from our reports that is a slightly inflated figure as the outfield section was empty, although there were more than 50,000 there.
^ a b Hornbaker, Tim. "(NJPW) New Japan Pro Wrestling Results - 2001" . LegacyOfWrestling.com .
^ a b Wilson, Kevin. "NOAH Dome Show 7/18/05" . PuroresuCentral.com .
^ a b "New Japan Pro-Wrestling Results: 2001" . Purolove.com .
^ Meltzer, Dave (April 21, 1997). "ECW PPV historical debut, Ogawa debut, MMA group out of business, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. New Japan garnered tons of mainstream publicity which led to a crowd announced at 60,500, which everyone was thrilled with since the show's advance wasn't promising at all. This would probably be a gate around $5 million which will make it wind up as almost surely the second biggest money show of 1997 behind only the 1/4 Dome show when it comes to total revenue. The show wasn't sold out but was fairly close to capacity and we're told that announced figure sounded about right.
^ a b Wall, Jeremy (2005). UFC's Ultimate Warriors: The Top 10 . Toronto: ECW Press. p. 45. ISBN 1550226916 .
^ Meltzer, Dave (May 15, 1995). "WCW taping policy update, real-life pro-wrestling shoot fight booked for UFC, an early "too many shows" story, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. What more can be said than a sellout of 60,000 at the Tokyo Dome and probably the largest house in the history of pro wrestling (a record that only lasted a few weeks) of somewhere between $5 and $6 million?
^ "New Japan Pro-Wrestling Results: 1999" . Purolove.com .
^ "AJPW King's Road New Century 2001 « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database" . www.cagematch.net .
^ Stern, Karl. "Ultimate History of Pro Wrestling - A Time Line of Every Major Event in Pro Wrestling History - 1998" . WhenItWasCool.com .
^ Meltzer, Dave (May 15, 1995). "WCW taping policy update, real-life pro-wrestling shoot fight booked for UFC, an early "too many shows" story, tons more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. Onita's much-ballyhooed final match on 5/5 at Kawasaki Baseball Stadium drew a sellout of approximately 50,000 fans (announced at 58,250) which would be a gate in the $2.5 million range and tons more in merchandise
^ a b c d e "Pro-Wrestling World Championship Series: 1957/10/07 - 10/25: 7 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Pro-Wrestling International Big Competitions (Manaslu Expedition Fundraising): 1955/07/15 - 09/04: 35 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e f g h i j "Pro-Wrestling Big Competitions for the Pacific Coast Championships (Fundraiser for Disabled Children): 1954/08/06 - 09/21: 42" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c "Asia Championships: 1955/11/08 - 11/22: 10 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e "The 1st Annual World League: 1959/05/21 - 06/15: 19 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e "Japan-U.S. Pro-Wrestling (JWA's first tour; fundraising for the Manaslu Expedition): 1954/02/19 - 03/07: 14 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "World Ladies' Pro-Wrestlig Big Competitions: 7 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e f "International Big Competition: 1956/04/24 - 06/07: 30 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "1954 - 1957 miscellaneous cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "International Competitions of the Fall: 1957/08/13 - 9/25: 35 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "The 3rd Annual World League: 1961/05/01 - 06/29: 44 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "Summer Series 1: 1967/07/21 - 08/16: 16 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Miscellaneous cards (1961/02 - 04)" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e f g h "International Competitions of the Fall: 1962/09/14 - 11/02: 42 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "Summer Series 1: 1968/07/05 - 08/14: 27 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "World Competitions of the Fall Supporting Tokyo Olympics: 1963/09/20 - 11/08: 40 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "International Competitions of the Winter: 1962/01/05 - 1962/02/13: 15 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e f "The 4th Annual World League: 1962/04/20 - 05/25: 33 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b c d e "The 5th Annual World League: 1963/03/22 - 05/17: 38 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "1966 Golden Series: 1966/05/27 - 07/06: 32 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "Selection Matches: 1962/05/27 - 07/01" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "International Competitions of the Spring: 1963/01/04 - 03/04: 23 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "International Championship Series (aka "Destroyer Series"): 1963/11/26 - 12/07: 12 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "New Year International Competitions: 1965/01/04 - 04/02: 19 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "MSG Series: 1967/02/24 - 03/25: 10 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "New Year Champion Series: 1967/12/29 - 1968/02/03: 21 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Golden Series: 1968/05/18 - 06/27: 31 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "NWA World Champion Series: 1969/11/14 - 12/14: 16 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Big Fight Series: 1974/02/22 - 03/19: 19 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Toukon Series: 1974/08/30 - 10/10: 30 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "All Star Dream Card - promoted by Tokyo Sports Newspaper" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "New Year Golden Series: 1976/01/02 - 02/06: 28 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Open Championship: 1975/12/06 - 12/18: 12 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ Malcolm, Andrew H. (June 26, 1976). "Ali, Inoki Fight to Draw in Dull Bout". New York Times . It was so dead, in fact. that many of the 14,000 fans at the Japan Martial Arts Hall tossed trash at the ring at the end of the last threeminute round.
^ "Toukon Series II: 1977/10/28 - 12/08: 32 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ a b "Big Fight Series: 1975/02/21 - 03/20: 25 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ Campbell, Jason. "Budokan Hall: 11/01/77" . ProWrestlingHistory.com .
^ "Giant Series: 1974/09/13 - 10/10: 22 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ " '78 Real World Tag Team League: 1978/12/01 - 12/15: 14 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ " '79 Real World Tag Team League: 1979/11/30 - 12/13: 13 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "The 1st Anniversary Giant Series: 1973/10/06 - 11/08: 27 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Summer Action Series: 1974/07/05 - 07/25: 15 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Toukon Series II: 1975/10/24 - 12/11: 41 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Open Tag Team Championship: 1977/12/02 - 12/15: 13 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "New Year Golden Series: 1978/01/06 - 02/09: 30 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "The 1st Madison Square Garden Series: 1978/04/21 - 06/01: 35 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ "Golden Fight Series: 1975/05/30 - 06/26: 24 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ Furious, Arnold (February 17, 2015). "Furious Flashbacks: New Japan Battle Satellite in Tokyo Dome" . 411mania.com .
^ a b c Marvez, Alex (1989). "INSIDE THE UNIVERSAL WRESTLING FEDERATION". In Meltzer, Dave (ed.). The Wrestling Observer's 1989 Yearbook . Campbell, California: Four Seasons Printing. pp. 92–95.
^ "Super Power Series: 1989/05/12 - 06/08: 20 cards" . Wrestling-Titles.com . Puroresu Dojo. Retrieved 9 June 2010 .
^ Cawthon, Graham. "Yearly Results: WCW 1989" . TheHistoryOfWWE.com .
^ Marvez, Alex (1988). "TOP WRESTLING NEWS STORIES OF 1988: ALL JAPAN SETS GATE RECORD WITH BRODY MEMORIAL". In Meltzer, Dave (ed.). The Wrestling Observer's 1988 Yearbook . Turlock, California: Inprint. p. 17.
^ Meltzer, Dave ; Alvarez, Bryan (August 5, 1996). "Major changes to WWF syndication, Herb Abrams dies, Kobashi wins Triple Crown for the first time, more". Wrestling Observer Newsletter . Campbell, California. Several of the groups this past week have run free shows as part of fireworks festivals or country fair type of events. The biggest was Tokyo Pro's show on 7/23 at Atami Sun Beach which was reported as being viewed by more than 65,000 fans.
^ Stern, Karl. "Ultimate History of Pro Wrestling - A Time Line of Every Major Event in Pro Wrestling History - 1998" . WhenItWasCool.com .
^ "AJPW King's Road New Century 2001 « Events Database « CAGEMATCH - The Internet Wrestling Database" . www.cagematch.net .
^ Wilson, Kevin. "NOAH Departure 2004" . PuroresuCentral.com .
^ Max, Stuart (August 1, 2002). "NJPW World Pro Wrestling Complete Edition on BS Asahi, 5/5/02" . Wrestling Viewpoint! . Archived from the original on December 16, 2002.
^ Max, Stuart (May 2, 2003). "ULTIMATE CRUSH (5/2/03)" . Strong Style Spirit . Archived from the original on June 8, 2003.
^ Max, Stuart (January 4, 2004). "[Results] New Japan, 1/4/04" . Strong Style Spirit . Archived from the original on April 13, 2004.
^ a b Johnson, Mike (January 4, 2015). "1/4 THIS DAY IN HISTORY: BRET HART RETURNS TO WWE, A LOT OF TOKYO DOME EVENTS AND MUCH MORE" . PWInsider.com .
^ "New Japan Pro-Wrestling Results: 2011" . Purolove.com .
^ Lambert, Jeremy (January 4, 2019). "Report: Wrestle Kingdom 13 Draws 38,162 Paid Attendance At Tokyo Dome" . Fightful.com .
^ Murphy, Dan (June 2015). "Wrestle Kingdom 9: OPENING WESTERN EYES TO THE WONDERS OF NEW JAPAN". Pro Wrestling Illustrated . p. 40. With an announced crowd of 36,000 fans and a packed card of 10 matches (including six championship matches), Wrestle Kingdom had a distinct major-league atmosphere and came through with stellar performances with talent that is finally getting its just due globally.
^ Harris, Jeffrey (January 4, 2014). "NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 8 iPPV Results 01.04.14: Tokyo, Japan" . 411mania.com .
^ Nason, Josh (January 4, 2018). "NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 12 draws 34,995 paid at Tokyo Dome" . F4Wonline.com . Wrestling Observer / Figure Four Online .
^ "DDT Pro-Wrestling Results: 2014" . Purolove.com .
^ Namako, Jason (January 4, 2013). "1/4 NJPW WrestleKingdom VII Results: Tokyo, Japan" . Wrestleview.com .
^ Pantoja, Kevin (January 4, 2017). "Kevin's NJPW WrestleKingdom 11 Review" . 411mania.com .
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