Goldberg & AEW Star: Global Showdown Brewing

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At 56, WWE Hall of Famer Goldberg is contemplating retirement from his on-and-off wrestling career that started in 1997. Having experienced peak activity during the final years of WCW and the early 2000s of WWE, Goldberg's 14-year hiatus ended in 2016 with his return to WWE in partnership with the WWE 2K17 video game promotion.

This comeback re-ignited his feud with Brock Lesnar, culminating in a match at WWE Survivor Series 2016. What was initially a single event transformed into a multi-year part-time stint with WWE, during which Goldberg participated in several premium live events and secured the WWE Universal Championship twice?

Goldberg Seeks Retirement Closure

Currently, a free agent, Goldberg, the Jackhammer Master, desires a proper retirement match before permanently stepping away from the ring.

Although he had an informal agreement for a WWE retirement match, Goldberg seemed to need to be noticed, prompting him to organize a four-city retirement tour himself. Details about the retirement tour have been sparse, but progress is being made.

A long-time wrestling promoter, Rick Bassman, told Haus of Wrestling, "I'm actively in touch with Bill. I'm working on a date right now. I don't promote much these days, but now and then, something fun comes up, and it's worth diving into." Bassman mentioned a tentative September date featuring both Goldberg and AEW star Sting in Jerusalem.

"So, working on a day in Jerusalem, Israel, for September of this year would potentially involve both Goldberg and Sting. Then on the latter, you have the AEW clearance issues, of course," Bassman continued. "That's something that I hope to put together, only because I've been in touch actively with Bill and then also with his agent, Barry Bloom.

To my knowledge, it still needs to all be nailed down." However, Bassman acknowledged that WWE could beckon Goldberg for a significant event. "Now that said, I would not be surprised to see Bill end up back at WWE for something massive," Bassman admitted. Goldberg's most recent match occurred in February 2022, where he faced defeat against Roman Reigns.