Opera Cup Insight

With the finals of the Opera Cup tournament coming up this weekend I thought it would be fitting to dive into the history of the Opera Cup and offer more information to those who might be aware. Up until I started noticing more advertisements from MLW I had no idea what the Opera Cup tournament was other than an interesting name for a tournament being conducted by an underrated promotion. Seeing these quotes definitely caught my interest though: 

“The oldest professional wrestling tournament in history will add a new chapter to its legacy as the 2021 edition of the “classic” comes to a conclusion on November 6th.”
“Held annually for nearly 50 years at various turn-of-the-century opera house locations from New York City to Boston, the Professional Wrestling Opera House Cup was a grueling multi-day tournament.”

Pro-wrestling has an insanely rich history that a lot of promotions seem to ignore for whatever reason. Likely most of it having to do with the thought that fans might not be interested in hearing about historical events that happened 70-100 years ago. However, it seems to me that MLW is out to keep the history alive and not just that, but keep those names from the past in the conversation. 

After a seventy-one year hiatus the Opera cup returned in 2019 and to show the importance the cup has it was constructed by the craftsmen who have worked on the Stanley Cup for the NHL. I’ve never seen names like George Hackenschmidt, Waldek Zbyszko, or Stu Hart mentioned on an active wrestling companies website outside of their Hall of Fame page. 

​“Inspired by the legends whose names are immortalized in plaques on the sides of the cup, including: George Hackenschmidt, Stu Hart, Leo Pardello, William Muldoon and Waldek Zbyszko, “the classic” has returned to reignite the spirit of the greats who preceded today and tomorrow’s greats.”

The opera cup is still deeply rooted in mystery, but I am a huge fan of tournaments, especially tournaments that carry a lot of weight. I would still love to learn more about the tournament and it's roots, but from what I have learned I am extremely interested. One can point out the idea that having the craftsmen who have worked on the Stanley Cup to construct your cup is enough, but this quote adds a little bit more to the perception of the tournament. 

“The Professional Wrestling Opera Cup is dedicated to the great men who have fought valiantly before us to ensure our passion, professional wrestling be cemented and respected in the annals of time.”

For more articles and all up to date information on Major League Wrestling visit www.mlw.com or for more on the Opera Cup click here!