The World (WWE)

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The World
Type	Themed-Restaurant
Founded	1999 in New York City
Headquarters	New York City
Key people	Vince McMahon, Owner of WWE
Industry	Entertainment restaurant

The World was a WWE-themed restaurant/nightclub in Times Square in New York City on the corner of Broadway and 43rd Street. The idea for the complex was inspired by rival organization WCW's Nitro Grill in Las Vegas.

[edit] History

In 1999, WWF Chairman Vince McMahon leased space at the Paramount Theater in Time's Square in Manhattan. He opened the complex in late 1999, originally named WWF New York. The complex consisted of a retail store with WWF merchandise and an underground nightclub. Wrestling fans from around the Metropolitan New York City area, as well as from around the world, went to the complex as they would show Pay Per Views, RAW, SmackDown!, and other events on monitors all around the nightclub, as well as on a big screen. A fee was charged for admission to the events. The restaurant exclusively showed WWF/WWE Pay Per Views live from the United Kingdom at no charge. WWF/WWE stars made appearances at the complex. A star or two hosted all events live from the complex. From October 2000 to May 2002, WWF Sunday Night Heat emanated from the complex, hosted by Michael Cole and Tazz.

In May 2002, WWE changed the complex's name to The World. This was to go with the name change of the company from WWF to WWE due to a lawsuit brought on by the World Wildlife Fund.

In February 2003, WWE CEO Linda McMahon announced that The World would close so WWE could concentrate on their global efforts. Immediately upon the announcement, the restaurant/nightclub was closed down. The retail shop was closed in April of that year.

The complex remained closed until 2005, when the Hard Rock Cafe took over the lease. On August 16, 2006, WWE returned to the location for the 2006 Diva Search finale.