When WWE announced that the October 7 episode of NXT would be “Invasion” branded, old-school fans were delighted that the famous 2001 pay-per-view was getting recognized. However, Sky News Arabia would subsequently report that Israeli officials were unhappy that WWE was running a show titled this on the anniversary of the 2023 Hamas attacks.
And now, seemingly confirming WWE was made aware of the issue with using the name on this date, during this week’s episode of NXT, it was confirmed that the show is now called “Showdown.” This was done during an in-ring segment featuring both WWE and TNA talents, with Santino Marella declaring, “This is not an invasion. We’ve been working together wonderfully for months now. This is more of an NXT and TNA showcase, no, no, no, a showdown.”
The first Invasion was initially going to be a Fully Loaded pay-per-view, but management changed this due to the company’s decision to go all-in regarding the WCW and ECW alliance against WWE, then known as the WWF. This would see several matches that were considered unimaginable just a year earlier taking place, headlined by a ten-man tag match of Chris Jericho, Kurt Angle, Steve Austin, Kane, and The Undertaker vs. Booker T, DDP, Rhyno, and the Dudley Boyz. And while some criticized the show for not featuring WCW’s biggest names, such as Goldberg, Sting, Ric Flair, and the nWo, it still saw 775,000 fans pay to watch it.
