Could the WWE's Pay-Per-Views Be Moved to Saturdays?

Come April 5, 2009, I will be sitting down to watch my last ever live WrestleMania. Am I getting bored of wrestling you might ask? No, I am getting a job.

Currently I am a student living in England, so staying up until four in the morning watching wrestling isn't a big deal for me. I can have a lie in on a Monday and usually get away with missing whatever I slept through.

Next year that will not be an option for me, as I will be moving in to the big wide world and seeking employment. Skipping Mondays in a full time job is a big no-no I hear, so there will be no way I can get away with watching WWE pay per views live.

This got me thinking (mostly in desperation) about whether or not there is a solution to this, which would suit not only me but everyone across the globe.

Then it hit me, why can’t pay per views be on Saturdays?

Now I know this might sound a little bizarre, but for a company with World in the title, the Sunday time slot hardly caters for anyone East of America.

Am I being selfish making this suggestion? Perhaps, but let me run you through some reasons for and against the move and I’ll let you make your own mind up.

As I have already discussed, if pay per views were moved to Saturdays it would allow almost everyone to watch, as they could stay up late on the Saturday night/Sunday morning (assuming they have nothing to do on Sundays).

For me, most pay per view events run from 1 am to 4 am, with the exception of WrestleMania. But for our friends down under (correct me if I’m wrong) they start at around 10 or 11 am on a Monday morning.

So anyone with a job there will almost definitely miss it live. This must affect the buy rates in a substantial way.

I understand that the majority of the WWE’s revenue comes from the USA, but they must realize that there is a resource just waiting to be tapped over here if they just make small changes like this.

The success of the tours in England, Australia, and various other locations proves that there is a market for the WWE in the rest of the world, but having the pay per views on a Sunday can only be holding this success back.

I am by no means an expert on the NFL (something the WWE definitely doesn't want to compete in terms of ratings), but I believe most football games are played in the early afternoon on Saturdays and Sundays. So I can’t see how moving the events between the days would make a difference.

However, I could imagine that there would be huge clashes between some big Saturday night shows that the WWE probably don’t want to try and compete with. I don’t know how much of an issue that would be though., as I don’t have much knowledge on American television.

Currently the WWE film all their shows in consecutive days: pay per views on the Sunday if they have one, RAW on Monday (with ECW usually filmed then too), and SmackDown on a Tuesday. The move in my opinion would have positive and negative effects.

The WWE probably benefits from getting all the filming done in straight days, and so do the wrestlers. It leaves them all the rest of the week free for whatever reasons. But the extra days rest may help them recover, and it would certainly mean they would come into RAW and SmackDown fresher.

The only other issue I could see with this is house shows and live appearances. The WWE runs a tight shift, and this change could upset a very delicate balance.

I’m sure a lot of you will be able to think of other reasons for and against this move, but I am simply hoping to get the ball rolling with my ideas. I would like to know what you think on the matter, because if there are no major reasons not to move the day I think the benefits could easily outweigh the detriments.