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Goldberg's last match the real end of WCW era

Posted: Jul 15th 2025 By: Facebook.com/WrestlingsGloryDays

I was reading a post on another Facebook group, and it was discussing how Goldberg’s last match really is the end of an era for WCW. It’s difficult to fathom how a company that closed its doors in 2001 could still have a final chapter all the way into 2025, but here we are.

Of all the major WCW players, Goldberg was the last to get a “final match.” From Head of Security Doug Dillinger knocking on the door, to Charles Robinson as the referee, appearances from DDP and Ernest Miller; this was actually a classy send-off not just to one of WCW’s former titans, but WCW in general.

It may sound a stretch, but as I thought about it more in-depth, my mind took me back to those simpler days of the Monday Night Wars, when I was an unabashed WCW fan for the most part. You didn’t tune into Nitro to see classic examples of catch-as-catch-can wrestling from one William Goldberg. One of the highlights was not the smooth, technical driving around the circuit, but the car crash - Goldberg mowing down another victim.

Obviously Goldberg had not kept up a weekly schedule since 2001. He’d had his run here and there before being brought back amongst those crying foul about him probably beating Gunther, and taking the belt because he’s Goldberg. Instead, you got a match that probably does fit on that one hand, along with when he beat Raven for the US Title, or successfully defended the World title against DDP and Sid, as one of Goldberg’s better matches. And he lost, which despite the occasion was a fitting end, helping pass the torch to the next big superstar.

Goldberg’s speech may have been cut off for time – cue Bret Hart in the production van jokes – but overall, this was a classy way to send off not only Goldberg – even if arguably it was overdue – but also a nod to the old school WCW fans. This was their moment to bask one more time in the glow of the pyro, a seminal and exciting time when the wrestling business was at the peak of its popularity, and – whether you love him or hate him – Goldberg was a big part of that popularity.

Happy retirement Bill Goldberg, and God Bless WCW.