WWE has confirmed the latest inductee for this year’s Hall of Fame.
Eric Bischoff was officially confirmed as the latest inductee for the upcoming Class of 2021 ceremony taking place during WrestleMania 37 weekend.
Bischoff got his start in wrestling in the 1980s working for the AWA. After moving to WCW in 1991, Bischoff quickly rose through the ranks. Bischoff became the executive producer of World Championship Wrestling. He was key in making the acquisition of Hulk Hogan for the company and launching WCW Monday Nitro.
After seeing the angle in Japan, Bischoff put WCW at the top of the Monday Night War with the nWo storyline. Signing Scott Hall and Kevin Nash from WWF and putting them with Hulk Hogan put WCW Monday Nitro over WWF Monday Night Raw for 84 consecutive weeks.
WCW was purchased by WWF in 2001. Bischoff would join his former rival in 2002 as the on-screen General Manager of WWE Raw, a position he would hold until 2005. Bischoff would later be hired in 2019 as the Executive Director of SmackDown, but he would be removed from that role later that year. Bischoff also spent time in Impact Wrestling.
Here is an excerpt from WWE’s announcement:
He joined World Championship Wrestling in 1991, hosting shows and calling the action on WCW’s weekly television shows. But by the mid-1990s, Bischoff had risen the ranks and became executive producer of WCW. He helped bring Hulk Hogan to the company and launched WCW Monday Nitro, the competitor to WWE’s Monday Night Raw that kicked off the infamous Monday Night War that helped make sports-entertainment a pop culture phenomenon.
Bischoff didn’t shy away from the camera either, joining up with 2020 WWE Hall of Fame inductees The nWo as they ran roughshod on the promotion. After WWE purchased WCW in 2001, he brought his brand of ruthless leadership to WWE in 2002 as the first General Manager of Monday Night Raw. His arrival was one of the most shocking moments in WWE history, and his time in charge of the red brand was defined by one simple phrase: “Controversy creates cash.”
This year’s Hall of Fame ceremony will see both the Classes of 2021 and 2020 inducted. The Class of 2020 was never inducted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Class of 2020 includes Batista, the Bella Twins, the nWo (Hollywood Hogan, Scott Hall, Kevin Nash, and Sean Waltman), JBL, the British Bulldog, and Jushin Thunder Liger. Molly Holly was already announced for the Class of 2021.
You can also view a clip from Wrestleview’s interview with Eric Bischoff from 2018 below: