With all of the blockbuster headlines, emerging promotions, revealing podcasts and talent out there, 2019 is shaping up to be wildest year on record in the wrestling world.

Vince McMahon's WWE remains king of the proverbial kayfabe castle. In recent years, the company has focused on global brand dominance. That strategy paid off financially, as the company's stock jumped from $11.26 per share in January 2009 to over $70 per share in June 2019.

Revenue has also followed suit. According to Macro Trend, the company's year-over-year earnings ending in March 2019 increased by 15.58 percent.

"Vince dreamed of getting Coke and a car," a former WWE creative staffer explained to Bleacher Report. "He got it."

McMahon's company is a household name. And like Coca-Cola, name recognition has led to bigger infusions of cash.

But while McMahon's fiscal dreams have come to fruition, the product that got him here has struggled to combat poor television ratings, low attendance, a rival upstart promotion and growing backlash from fans.

Sinking Ratings

In 2014, Raw was hovering between 3.6 and 4 million viewers per week, according to Geno Mrosko of Cageside Seats and data provided by Wrestle Zone's Mike Killam. Today, we've seen numbers gravitate around 2.24 million and lower.

WWE's ratings situation isn't good news for anyone. It has even garnered unwanted attention from corporate America, despite the company's recent efforts to bolster its product.

NBCUniversal, home to Raw through the USA Network, and Fox—the soon-to-be new home of SmackDown—have both expressed concern, according to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter.

Fox seems especially wary after shelling out more than $1 billion to host SmackDown for the next five years, according to the Hollywood Reporter's Marisa Guthrie. Pro Sports Extra's Brad Shepard reported Fox executives recently held a meeting with WWE's leadership team to "address any concerns and changes."

"WWE has been tracking downward in the ratings since I was at WWE in 2007," Major League Wrestling CEO Court Bauer told Alfred Konuwa of Forbes. "Fans are sophisticated. They're selective."

In April 2019, McMahon blamed the ratings dip on temporary talent absences, according to Chuck Carroll of CBS New York. Roman Reigns took a leave of absence to undergo treatment for leukemia, while other mid-card Superstars were recovering from injuries.

But with WWE's talent pool now mostly back intact, ratings have still continued to slide.

Live Attendance

Ratings aren't WWE's only issue. Audience attendance levels are also dipping.

"Maybe" 6,000 people attended the latest pay-per-view, Stomping Grounds, according to Defy Wrestling's Matt Farmer. "Probably smallest PPV crowd in a long time," he added.  

One theory around shrinking attendances is the lack of mainstream stars left in WWE.

John Cena, the company's last tried-and-true crossover name, barely wrestles anymore. At 54 years old, The Undertaker is a shell of his old self, as his clash with Goldberg at WWE's Super ShowDown demonstrated.

Bleacher Report spoke with a former WWE Creative staffer who believes the company inflicted this damage on itself by not investing in long-term talent.

"This is where the erosion of making the talents of 2008-2014 hurts them," they said. "Name a star who is over from that era who was actually made in that era. The Shield guys were the major breakthrough."

Compounding this issue is how WWE seems to squash a good thing when it comes to star-making.

This issue was never more obvious than with the rise and fall of Bray Wyatt. After being built up in 2016 and finally winning the WWE Championship at the 2017 Elimination Chamber, for reasons we can't explain, he gave the title up a few months later at WrestleMania 33 to Randy Orton.

This not only crushed his momentum but also ripped away the menacing star power he had built up over the past six months.

Looking back at Wyatt and the entire original brand split of 2016 and you'll see examples of this. From the SmackDown side, Dean Ambrose, Cena, AJ Styles and others were all creating "must-see" moments. The blue brand's product was hot, and ratings—while not staggering—were better than they are today.

"Last night's SmackDown on the USA Network averaged 1.833 million viewers, the lowest number for the show since the 2016 brand split and its move to airing live on Tuesday nights," Paul Fontaine of the Wrestling Observer wrote, referring to the last show in April 2019.

Between futile storylines and stalled momentum, this genuine lack of star-building has helped cripple ratings and live attendance.

All Elite Wrestling: Threat or Fiction?

Sometimes outside forces can invoke the biggest wake-up calls.

All Elite Wrestling's attempt to emerge as a mainstream alternative for fans—the company recently signed a deal with WarnerMedia to host original weekly programming on TNT—could force WWE to push its boundaries and improve. 

"Wrestling fans have wanted—and needed—something different, authentic and better for far too long," AEW owner Tony Khan said, per Bleacher Report's Mike Chiari. "AEW is answering the call."

AEW already boasts more than 660,000 followers on Instagram. Compare that to an established brand like Impact Wrestling, which has around 432,000 followers, and you'll begin to see why wrestling fans have high hopes for the new promotion.

AEW has also attained star power thanks to Khan's deep pockets and is letting longtime wrestlers have a say in creative. Kenny Omega, Chris Jericho, Jon Moxley, Cody Rhodes and the Young Bucks have all generated significant attention for the company.

By allowing talent to be fostered organically through creative angles and decisions, AEW hopes its product will remain fresh and cutting-edge. So far, it's worked.

AEW's Double or Nothing pay-per-view drew between 98,500 and 113,000 buys worldwide, per the Wrestling Observer (h/t Marc Middleton of Wrestling Inc.), without a weekly television program to help boost ratings.

It's easy to fall in love with the idea of AEW for all of the reasons stated above. However, it's important to remember WWE remains at its peak financially.

While WWE should remain wary of AEW, a startup promotion isn't likely to end its tenure as the top dog in professional wrestling.

Creative Solutions

With sagging ratings, low attendance and the threat of AEW on the horizon, is there any hope for a WWE Creative turnaround?

WWE recently hired Paul Heyman and Eric Bischoff to take on executive director roles with the company—Heyman will oversee Raw while Bischoff will lead SmackDown—according to Sports Illustrated's Justin Barrasso. That could be a step in the right direction.

Both men have a decorated pedigree not only running rival promotions but working within the confines of WWE itself. Plus, with a 73-year-old McMahon leading the charge to bring back the XFL, perhaps hiring two former show-runners will be his way of easing out of every creative decision WWE makes.

Bischoff and Heyman can't be the only change.

"When WWE gets weird and creative with its product, it wins," David Bixenspan wrote at Deadspin.

Bixenspan nailed the crux of the matter.

Look at WWE programming today. The two best things going for the company can be classified as weird and creative.

Wyatt's compelling Firefly Fun House gimmick has become must-watch TV, with videos generating millions of views on YouTube alone, while WWE's 24/7 Championship has also provided fans with a breath of fresh air. A source within WWE reportedly told Pro Sports Extra's Brad Shepard that R-Truth is the company's "biggest draw on all platforms."

YouTube content starring Truth routinely receives millions of views, which is amazing for someone who is perceived to be at the mid-card level.

Innovation from guys like Truth and Wyatt begs the question: How does this type of creativity not translate to the main event scene?  It seems like McMahon wants to protect the brand and not take any huge risks at the top, which has led to frustration among fans.

There's been no better example of destroying the main event picture than the re-emergence of Dean Ambrose, or as he's called today, Jon Moxley.

Making his shocking debut at AEW's Double or Nothing pay-per-view, Moxley closed the show by decimating Jericho and Omega. In a span of 10 minutes, he set a tone, lit the crowd on fire and pushed his character into hyperdrive.

Why didn't WWE use this approach when he came back off a lengthy injury in 2018?

Moxley vented about his WWE return on the Talk is Jericho podcast: "Basically, their idea for me coming back was exactly what everyone expected, no shock, nothing different, just good ol' Lunatic Fringe, again."

He then pulled back the curtain and opened up about McMahon and the creative team: "I think Vince is the problem. Not so much Vince, but the structure he built around himself."

The former WWE Creative staffer we talked to verified this way of thinking: "I think Dean's comments are in line with the system that is in place. WWE television is written and produced the same as it was in 2000."

Limited creative freedom awarded to talent and staff has resulted in marquee feuds fizzling out, repetitive matches taking place and storylines that seem to go nowhere or never reach a logical conclusion.

"I think it's the erosion of the product mattering," the former WWE Creative member said. "Payoffs don't matter anymore. Take the recent wild-card rule, introduced by Mr. McMahon as evidence. We were told it was four wild cards. Now it's not even a real thing. It's just whatever fits."

It's time to make creative matter again. WWE could even pull a few pages out of Triple H's NXT brand. It should nurture homegrown talent and give them a pivotal role when they're called up to the main roster.

At this point, who doesn't believe Johnny Gargano and Adam Cole could lead Raw into the future?

To turn declining attendances around and boost TV ratings, WWE must move forward in a cohesive manner and allow its talent to dictate the product.