wXw 25th Anniversary: 25 Years Of We Love Wrestling

 

"It was December 24th 2000, when a bunch of wrestlers, including Claudio Castagnoli, got bored and set up a wrestling ring at a bar in Germany" This or something similar is the tale that is told when it comes to the creation of Europe's most prolific wrestling promotion.

Little did they know that 25 years later, members of the wrestling community around know and respect the name of Westside X-Treme Wrestling.

Multiple stars like Aleister Black, Ilja Dragunov, Gunther, Bryan Danielson, Jon Moxley and many many others forged their careers in wXw.
wXw understand themselves as the standard barror of European indy wrestling and is determined to create a new generation of legends just like those I named before in their wXw Wrestling Academy.
Their annual wXw 16 Carat Gold Tournament is the place for any talent or fan in the industry.

wXw is a story of success and resiliance, but also a story of setbacks and groundbreaking shakeups.

Without wXw, I would have never gotten into indy wrestling, let alone participating in it.
Back at modern school in the 2000s, there was this rumour that some pupils would wrestle like those on TV. Like Batista and Triple H. Back the,n I did not know this was not a myth.

One day I decided to browse genickbruch.com (wrestlingdata.com) to see if the rumours were actually true and there would be a wrestler of my then hometown of Wesel. And it was true: Karsten Beck was his name. I began researching online who he was and what he does. Besides some pictures, something having a blast at our local KFC, I found that indeed Karsten was a wrestler who regularly performed for GSW and wXw. I began watching his promos and matches, often alongside one Christian Michael Jakobi.

Years later, during my job training, I learned that many of my colleagues knew Karsten since he was a child.
I also found out that he and I shared the same class teacher at Modern School, just during different times.
Karsten Beck was harassed by his schoolmates at school because of his weight. He began working out, and through that, he found his passion: Pro Wrestling. My colleagues even went so far and gifted me tickets to go see him at the wXw 15th Anniversary Tour in Borken in 2015.
His name is still known in the gyms in my hometown. A former gym leader told me stories about how focused Karsten Beck was during his training, and many saw him as a role model because he was so determined.

Karsten Beck would go on to become a multi-time wXw Unified World Wrestling Champion.

Because I was extremely shy at the time, I only watched his rise in wXw from afar. But that would all change in September 2018. When I was motivated by my friends at WrestleTalk to come to Wrestling Media Con in Manchester. There, I got a pep talk from a former wrestler to go to wXw big events.

I went to the wXw World Tag Team Tournament 2018 and barely missed a wXw event in Oberhausen ever since.
Although I just missed out on seeing the legendary Ilja Dragunov return at wXw 16 Carat live and in person, I got to see many other iconic moments like the Absolute Andy 'Screen Of Fog' promo, the crownings of Bobby Gunns and Jurn Simmons, the epic cage massaker of The Crown, the dominnant title run of Robert Dreissker, Reich & Schön, Hot & Spicy, the 16 Carat return of Michael Knight, the christmas championship present of Levaniel, the rise of Peter Tihanyi, the explosion of RISE, the formation of AMBOSS, the heel runs of Fast Time Moodo & Dennis Dullnig, the RINGKAMPF masterpieces, the money rain of Bandido vs. Mike Bailey, the debut of Peter Tihanyi, the arrival of Tetsuya Naito, the epic battle of WALTER and Lucky Kid, the wonderful introduction to hungarian talent, the connection between Anita Vaughan and the audience, training with Elijah Blum, the wXw Quizschlacht, there is only 1 Called Manders, the return of Timothy Thatcher and many many many moments more.

wXw withstood the test of time and hardships like the COVID-19 pandemic, the necessary decisions that followed the Speaking Out movement, the retirement of Christian Michael Jakobi, the leave of Dennis Birkendahl or the passings of Karsten Beck, Absolute Andy and John Klinger.

wXw is still here 25 years later, and while the moments and matches play a factor in all of that, it is the people who really made the difference over the years.
Whether it is the incredible staff working at the shows or the fans who come and watch.
Attending wXw events has always been a lot more than just watching a wrestling event. It has been about seeing old and new friends and enjoying time together away from the stress of everyday life.

During my time at wXw, I only ever experienced kindness, and I truly mean that.
There are a couple of people who represent the kindness in wXw, which is the true fuel that keeps this company alive and well. To those who read this, you know who you/they are.

We Love Wrestling is more than just a slogan. It's simply the glue of it all.

Being able to manage 25 years in the wrestling business? It is absolutely mindblowing. You have to be either absolutely insane or you must have the thickest skin in the world.
Whatever their secret recipe for the company leaders, Felix Kohlenberg and Tassilo Jung is, they found it.

On December 13th 2025, we celebrate.
25 Years Of wXw.
25 Years Of Moments.
25 Years Of Meeting Great People.
25 Years Of We Love Wrestling.

On to the next 25 Years. Let's bring it!
Thank you for reading.