Vince McMahon announces Iraq tour this Christmas

W.W.E chairman Vince McMahon says W.W.E is worlds second largest traveling show, Its second to the circus, and he has a vision of taking Raw live around the world internationally. He has already taken live Raws to the U.K. and Japan, but he envisions something even bigger.

"We're on the road every week of the year. It's a live show," McMahon told zap2it.com prior to tomorrow's 800 episodes milestone celebration. "Can you imagine doing a two-hour live show every Monday, somewhere around the world ? The only one that's delayed is the one we do out of Iraq."

McMahon announced WWE will be doing a tour in Baghdad, Iraq this year for a "Tribute to the Troops" special they put on each Christmas. NBC will be carrying the show in Iraq, but a date is yet to be determined by them.

"The feedback and response is enormous. They so much appreciate any slice of Americana. It's really all about the troops. It's not about us," he said. "The matches and so forth are okay, but it's really about messaging and communication."

McMahon also had a traditional parting shot for the mainstream media, which according to him doesn't cover the WWE product with respect.

Said McMahon: "We went direct to our consumer years ago, bypassing the media, because we had this connection straight to our consumer. But now, it's time to really tell our story, and this is an opportunity to do that."

McMahon's wants to look for the next big conquest in the world of entertainment and wrestling. Taking Raw live around the world on a weekly basis would be a huge undertaking, but it's a subtle hint at the potential for more international brands where WWE could rotate live Raws from seven or eight different locations once every two months. One week might be a showcase of Raw from India, the next week from China, etc. McMahon's a big thinker, so it will be interesting to hear WWE's commentary on international expansion this Tuesday when they report earnings.